The family of a baby girl born with a rare genetic condition have thanked Macclesfield Hospital for saving their daughter’s life.
Martha Hinchliffe has Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome, which causes low muscle tone, heart problems and delays in development.
The one-year-old gave her family a scare recently when she became poorly and was rushed to Macclesfield Hospital.
After days on a life support machine, Martha is now recovering at home on Buxton Road, Macclesfield, with mum Natalie, 33, dad Nev, 35, and sister Nancy, six.
Now the family has launched a fundraising campaign to help revamp the children’s ward.
Natalie said: “Martha was in hospital for over a week and on life support. It was a scary time. The nurses and doctors were amazing.
“We wanted to give something back and noticed that the children’s ward was in need of some TLC.”
And thanks to money generously donated to the family, they have already bought and donated five TV and DVD players. They are now hoping to raise enough money to buy new colourful curtains for the ward.
Natalie said: “Earlier this year Arighi Bianchi and Skin Creations on Sunderland Street raised some money for Martha to help with her future treatment. We decided to use that cash to express our gratitude to the brilliant staff at the children’s ward who helped us through a tough time.”
Martha was born in August last year and soon developed problems. Doctors found Martha had a ‘floppy throat’, problems with her left foot and eyes, a hole in her heart and tight valves.
A chromosome test confirmed she has Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome, which affects one in 50,000 births.
Martha is fed through a tube and needs daily physiotherapy. She also has regular consultations with genetic counsellors, speech therapists, eye specialists, cardiologists, audiologists and a neurologist.
With only 180 people with the syndrome in the country, information and support is difficult to come by.
There is also no known cure. Doctors can only treat the symptoms of the condition when they arise.
Martha’s parents have been buoyed by the support of their family, friends and wider community including staff at CollectaCase in Macclesfield, where Natalie works.
