Breast cancer patient marks hospital leave
A GARTH Brooks fan who was in hospital just days ago showed up to Croke Park in her boots to see her idol perform.
Elaine Fitzsimons, 41, is battling breast cancer and spent eleven days in hospital before being discharged on Tuesday.
The Bettystown native had tickets to see the country music legend last weekend, but Aiken Promotions changed her tickets to Friday night so she wouldn’t miss out.
Elaine described the show as “absolutely amazing”, despite requiring medical help near the end.
She also revealed that Garth spotted her in the crowd and “blew her kisses”.
Elaine said: “I was supposed to go last weekend but I was admitted into hospital for eleven days due to my chemo. I got in contact with Aiken Promotions and they changed my tickets...
“I got right up to the front, but during the last half hour of the concert the weather changed and it got really cold. It got into my bones and I ended up in the medics after the concert.
“But I really, really enjoyed it. I had a banner which said ‘cancer took my roots but I’ve still shown up in boots’, the same as my T-shirt. I was on the walkway and Garth saw the banner. He blew kisses and made love hearts with his hands, he was really happy to see it.
“It was absolutely amazing. I didn’t think I was going to make it from hospital to it.”
Elaine said that “every muscle in her body is aching” but the show was worth it.
She said she “cannot thank the medical team at Croke Park enough”, saying their care was “absolutely fantastic”.
Elaine explained she’s had a “lot of ups and downs” since her diagnosis, but has received “an awful lot of support” from family and friends.
She added: “It’s going good at the moment. I had my last bit of chemo two weeks ago. I’ve had ups and downs with it, probably more downs than ups to be honest.
“I’m due to go on holiday with all of my family in three weeks’ time.
“When I come back from that I’m due to do 20 sessions of radiation. I have a CT scan on the 26th of this month as well so please God it goes well.”
He blew kisses and made love hearts with his hands ELAINE FITZSIMONS ON SEEING HER IDOL GARTH