The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
‘It’ s my only option’
Woman given just weeks to live wants to raise cash for life-saving treatment
A woman with cancer has appealed to the public to help her raise £500,000 for potentially life-saving treatment in America.
Roz Paterson, 52, from Beauly in the Highlands, has been given weeks to live after being diagnosed with an aggressive form of blood cancer known as large diffuse B-cell lymphoma (LDBCL).
When four bouts of chemotherapy failed, it became clear she was heading towards a “desperate situation”, leading her to consider alternatives, including a pioneering new treatment known as Car-T cell therapy.
It is not available on the NHS in Scotland and any treatment in England would be too late, she said.
With treatment available at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Mrs Paterson is preparing to travel to the US with husband Malcolm McDonald, 62, daughter Thea, 13, and son David, 10, for what she says is her “last chance”.
She said: “The cancer I have, it’s a high grade one which will be very aggressive and really hard.
“Normally you would get your chemo, it would attack the cancer and it would cure it, but because my cancer is fast-moving, really my life expectancy is quite short and the consultant has said it’s weeks, maybe months, but not a year, so time really is of the essence.
“It a big adventure, it’s kind of terrifying and mad but it’s the only way to do it. It’s the only option I have left.
“We have always been together. I was a stay-athome mum, which I am really glad about now because if my time is limited, I’m glad I had that time with them.
“If I come through and I’m cured, what a great time I am going to have. If it’s the end and it fails, then we will be together at the end.”
In a desperate attempt to stay alive and watch her two children grow up, Mrs Paterson launched a crowd-funding appeal on Tuesday to help raise the money needed to give her this second chance at life.
After just 24 hours the appeal been shared more than 1,400 times on social media, generating more than £12,500.
She added: “It’s quite overwhelming, actually. I was very tearful last night because I just didn’t expect the level of response.
“They are lifesavers. I just can’t thank them enough for their generous impulse and their proactiveness.
“It’s absolutely wonderful, it’s just great. I appreciate it from absolutely everyone as I know for some people £5 is a lot. I just really appreciate that.”
Judith Margaret Whitelaw, 45, Mrs Paterson’s neighbour and friend of five years, said they are “desperate to raise the money”.
She said: “This is absolutely our last chance. We are absolutely desperate to raise the money.
“It would be absolutely fantastic if we could do something to help her.
“The community have really come together to help do something. We are a very small community who want to help raise the profile and raise as much as we can of the money.”
Mrs Paterson’s fundraising page can be found at www.gofundme.com/ lifesaving-treatment-forroz