Sunday, December 8, 2013
Saturday, December 7, 2013
Family Eyes the Right Ingredients
A FAMILY in the Esperance region has found the right ingredient for successful fundraising.
The
Kershaw family donated proceeds from their country cookbook toward the
purchase of a new piece of ophthalmology diagnostic equipment at
Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH).
The
$100,000 cutting-edge Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) equipment
recently donated to PMH enables doctors to take non-invasive 3D
cross-sectional images of the interior of the eyes, in particularly the
retina, producing pictures significantly more precise and accurate
compared to those produced by conventional diagnostic equipment.
Brett and Shona Kershaw, from West River, donated $20,000 of proceeds from their cookbook, Lexie's Look and Cook Recipe Book,
to the PMH Foundation to go towards purchasing the pioneering
equipment, which will assist doctors in diagnosing eye conditions and
diseases such as retinoblastoma, the type of eye cancer their daughter,
Lexie, was diagnosed with in 2011.
The
family was inspired to fundraise for PMH Foundation after Lexie was
diagnosed and successfully treated for aggressive retinoblastoma at the
hospital, after her parents kept noticing a strange silvery-white
appearance in Lexie's right eye pupil in photos.
Catching
the cancer before it spread to her optic nerve, Mr and Mrs Kershaw made
the decision to have Lexie's right eye removed to prevent the return of
the disease.
Mr and Mrs Kershaw said Lexie is now a happy, healthy three-year-old.
The family said their fundraising effort was aimed at raising awareness about retinoblastoma.
"Since
the start we knew every single dollar of the proceeds from our cookbook
would go towards PMH Foundation and would help raise awareness about
retinoblastoma," Mrs Kershaw said.
"We're
absolutely delighted to have helped fund the purchase of this particular
new ophthalmology equipment, because it's a quicker way of diagnosing
children's eye conditions, and for the kids it's non-invasive and a bit
of fun, like a giant camera that they peek into.
"More
than anything we want to thank all of the people who have supported us
and made this possible, who have bought the cook book and helped raise
awareness about eye cancer."
"My message to
other parents is don't hesitate if you have a fear or something
niggling you, even if you feel stupid. Go have it checked."
Mrs
Kershaw said her family had been overwhelmed by community support
across WA for their fundraising initiative, with Lexie's Look and Cook Recipe Book raising an impressive $43,000 so far.
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