Maria Barry, 58, who lives in Harrow, north-west London, with her children Nico, 32, Luca, 30, and Nadia, 27, began suffering from itchy and cracked hands during the first Covid lockdown in March 2020. At first, Maria thought it was a reaction to a new cleaning product she was using, but in April 2022, she was diagnosed with bile duct cancer – which is rare with around 1,000 new cases a year in the UK according to the NHS – and , without treatment, now has only three to six months to live. Maria is raising money to pay for her treatment. (Collect/PA Real Life) The nursery manager said: “The gene therapy treatment I need is not available on the NHS and costs £16,500 a month privately, so we are desperately trying to raise money using a GoFundMe page. “Anything we can get will go towards saving my life. My children all live at home with me and I have no grandchildren yet. I’m not ready to die, I’m fighting to live.” For Maria, her problems began when her hands began to itch non-stop. Maria says she is not ready to leave her children yet. (Collect/PA Real Life) He said: “I had gallstones two years ago and ended up having my gall bladder removed, but other than that I’ve never had any health problems. “During the lockdown, I developed a condition where my hands broke and I had to wear gloves. At first I thought it was a reaction to a new cleaning product I had bought to clean the kitchen. “It was so itchy and I had aches and pains in my elbows, joints, everywhere and I was constantly on the phone with the doctor.” The mom of three was diagnosed with bile duct cancer in April 2022. (Collect/PA Real Life) Due to the lockdown, Maria was unable to make a face-to-face appointment, so she had to send her doctor photos of her red and sore palms. Over the next year, she was prescribed various steroid creams, gels and UV treatments, but to no avail. She said: “Nothing seemed to work and I was finally referred to a dermatologist.” Maria’s children fight to save their mom. (Collect/PA Real Life) He added: “It took a while to see them and even then they suggested new drugs to try.” But Maria says her intuition was screaming at her, telling her this was more than just itchy skin. He said: “I just knew something was wrong. They had spent months trying different solutions and nothing had worked. Something had to be wrong, so I asked for a CT scan.” Maria has only given three to six months to live. (Collect/PA Real Life) On Christmas Eve 2021, Maria was called to Northwick Park Hospital for her results and – fearing the worst – took her grown-up children Niko, who is out of work, Luca, a salesman, and Nadia, a football center manager, with her. . , for support. He said: “The news completely shocked me. The doctors suspected I had a rare cancer and would have to have a biopsy. “I was devastated and it completely ruined our Christmas. The whole time, I was just worried about what was going to happen next.” Maria’s treatment costs £16,500 a month. (Collect/PA Real Life) After New Year’s, Maria had three biopsies, all of which were inconclusive. But he said: “After the fourth biopsy, they confirmed they had found something malignant. “It was so rare that the doctors said they had to do further tests to find out what type of cancer it was.” Maria says she is not ready to die. (Collect/PA Real Life) In April 2022, Maria was officially diagnosed with bile duct cancer. It starts in the bile duct and, in her case, after lying dormant for years, had now spread to her liver. He said: “Doctors confirmed I had a 9cm mass known as intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma and I was offered chemotherapy which started in May.” Unfortunately, Maria had a hard time coping with the treatment. Maria was put on chemotherapy after suffering severe side effects. (Collect/PA Real Life) She said: “I was so tired and sick that the doctors decided to put me on chemotherapy, which I’m still doing now, because it had gotten to the point where I thought the chemotherapy was going to kill me.” But with no more treatment, Maria’s prognosis was grim as doctors gave her just three to six months to live. Desperate for an alternative, her daughter Nadia began looking for other options. Maria started gene therapy treatment last week. (Collect/PA Real Life) Maria said: “Nadia found a gene therapy trial that had recently been done at University College London Hospital. “We asked but, unfortunately, we were too late to take part.” Unlike chemotherapy, gene therapy only targets the cancer during treatment, which may mean there are fewer side effects for the patient, and Maria believes she is likely to benefit from it. Maria’s hands itched and hurt during the first lockdown in March 2020. (Collect/PA Real Life) He said: “The treatment is not available on the NHS but at the moment it is my only chance of surviving or extending my life. “It costs around £16,500 a month, which we have raised funds for.” After raising enough money for a month’s treatment, Maria started the medication last week, which consists of two tablets taken daily. Nadia says she refuses to accept her mom’s fate. (Collect/PA Real Life) She said: “I was in constant pain and feeling ill after the chemotherapy. “I’ve recently started taking medication and although it’s too early to tell yet, I’m hoping it will improve my quality of life. “Each month on this treatment costs £16,500. It’s such a big question.” Mom was prescribed various treatments for her hands, but to no avail. (Collect/PA Real Life) He added: “I wish there were other options, but this is the only chance I have to live, so we’re fundraising at the moment. “We’ve managed to raise enough money for July’s medicines and we’ve almost reached our target for next month, but what do we do after that? “If we don’t have enough money, am I supposed to die?” The gene therapy treatment will cost Maria around £170,000 a year to receive. (Collect/PA Real Life) She added: “It feels so unfair and I’m struggling to come to terms with how money is standing between me and the treatment I need to live. “I don’t want to leave my children, I’m not ready to leave.” Nadia Barry, Maria’s daughter, is determined to fight for her mom. The doctors were puzzled as to what was causing Mary’s hands to crack and hurt. (Collect/PA Real Life) She said: “Whenever I tell people my mum has bile duct cancer they always say they’ve never heard of it and that’s how we felt when we first found out. “We want to raise awareness so more people know about it and know the signs to look out for. “My mom is young, her kids still live at home, and she’s not ready to die yet.” Maria hopes to live long enough to meet her future grandchildren. (Collect/PA Real Life) She added: “She dedicated her life to caring for children working in social services and later as a nursery manager, and helped anyone who needed help and never judged anyone. She is the hero of the neighborhood and is loved by everyone in the community. We cannot imagine our life without it. “I will do everything in my power to save her but, as a working class family, we cannot afford to keep up with the £16,500 bill every month. which will be about £170,000 for the year. “We know times are tough and we appreciate any help we can get. “I will fight for my mom.” To donate to Mary’s cause visit: www.gofundme.com/f/pv22et-help-save-our-mum
