Doc who saved my son has plan for Charlie... give him that chance
Dad backs fight to send tot for therapy
THE father of a boy treated by the US doctor who wants to help Charlie Gard has urged authorities to let the dying tot have the therapy.
Art Estopinan’s son, Art Jr, was given two months to live shortly after birth.
But he said the lad, who has a similar mitochondrial depletion syndrome to Charlie, is now six and “getting stronger”.
Mr Estopinan, 51, added: “The premier paediatric mitochondrial specialist in the US, and probably the world, has said he has a medical plan to help Charlie Gard, like he has helped my son.
“We are beyond shocked that doctors in the UK are saying Charlie should ‘die with dignity’. How insensitive when there is a treatment which could save Charlie’s life and eminent doctors in the US who are willing to help him.”
Art Jr was the first person in the US to receive the experimental nucleoside therapy for the rare genetic condition.
Charlie’s parents Connie Yates, 31, and Chris Gard, 32, from Bedfont, South West London, are fighting for their son to have the same treatment in the US after raising more than £1.3million.
Yesterday, they released a moving picture of themselves watching over the 10-month-old in his hospital bed.
It came as Washington sources said the American hospital and doctor behind the treatment had agreed to waive their fees for Charlie.
Describing his own family’s plight on ITV’s Good Morning Britain yesterday, Mr Estopinan, from Baltimore, Maryland, said: “Our son was told he would only have two months to live.
“This is a very rare disorder and, with all due respect to the great doctors at Great Ormond Street Hospital, this disease isn’t well known among these doctors. We were told to go home; he’s going to die, there’s nothing you can do. I looked the doctor in the eye and said, ‘Thanks for the diagnosis, but we won’t go home to take him to die’.”
He also argued with TV’s Dr Hilary Jones, who said Charlie’s type of illness was “far rarer” than Art Jr’s and “Sometimes real parental love is letting go”.
Mr Estopinan hit back: “You are 100% wrong. My son has been on a ventilator for five years. He’s getting stronger.
“When he got home four years ago, he couldn’t move anything, only his eyes. Now he can move his hands, feet and fingers, he’s a happy boy. We feel very fortunate to be American and not British because if we lived in the UK Arturito would surely be dead by now.” And he praised US President Donald Trump for offering to help Charlie – despite UK and European courts ruling his life support should be withdrawn. Mr Estopinan said: “President Trump has saved him.” On Monday, days after Charlie’s life-support machine was due to be switched off, Trump tweeted: “If we can help little #CharlieGard, as per our friends in the UK and the Pope, we would be delighted to do so.” It came after Pope Francis backed Charlie’s family. The Pope’s hospital in Rome has now offered to take the youngster into its care. But Trump’s intervention was met with frustration in some quarters of Whitehall, with No10 calling it “a delicate case”. The Ministry of Justice said there was no basis to challenge the court rulings against Charlie’s parents.