GoFundMe,<\/a> launched by Lorraine’s sister Jennifer, has raised over \u20ac60k following a huge response. Jennifer told CorkBeo the family are ‘incredibly grateful and overwhelmed’ by the support they have recieved.<\/p>\n“I’m awake all night, every time I look at the page, it’s gotten bigger”, Jennifer said. “It just shows how generous people are.”<\/p>\n
Lorraine, originally from Bishopstown, now living in Ballincollig, had been a baby photographer, who ran her own studio, before her devastating diagnosis.<\/p>\n
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Lorraine Kirby(Image: Jennifer Kelleher)<\/p>\n
“She had 2 rounds of chemo”, Jennifer said. “The last round shrunk 90% of the tumour, but 10% got bigger. They told her she only had 1 option – chemo for the rest of her life. She did loads of research and found a place in Germany that accepted her for treatment. There are a few things she’d be eligible to get that aren’t available in Ireland, but the cost is massive.”<\/p>\n
The treatment includes Dendritic Cell Therapy and TPCE (Transpulmonary Chemoembolization), which is an experimental immunotherapy where a patient’s immune cells are extracted, trained outside the body to recognize tumor markers, and reinfused to boost the immune response.<\/p>\n
The cost of this treatment, as well as travel and accommodation, can run into the hundreds of thousands of euro, far beyond what most families would ever be able to afford. The fundraiser has offered a lifeline to mum of 3 Lorraine.<\/p>\n
“She\u2019s doing really, really well, no one would have known. She doesn\u2019t look sick”, Jennifer said. ” She\u2019s a mom to 3, and some days I\u2019m looking at her thinking she\u2019s doing better than I do. I think the kids keep her going.”<\/p>\n
It’s been a tough few years for Lorraine, but her battle with cancer shows she’s nothing if not a fighter – and she’s facing this latest challenge with hope. She wrote:<\/p>\n
“There are moments in life when \u201cthank you\u201d just doesn\u2019t feel like enough, and this is one of them. To every single person who has donated to my GoFundMe, shared my story, sent a message, or kept me in your thoughts and prayers\u2014thank you from the very bottom of my heart.”<\/p>\n
As many of you know, this journey has been incredibly difficult, and there have been times when I\u2019ve felt scared, overwhelmed, and uncertain about what the future holds. But because of your kindness and generosity, you\u2019ve given me something I desperately needed: hope.”<\/p>\n
“Every donation, no matter the size, is so much more than financial support. It\u2019s a reminder that I am loved, that I am not alone in this fight, and that there are so many people who believe my life is worth fighting for. That is something I will carry with me forever.”<\/p>\n
“Thanks to your incredible compassion, I now have the chance to travel to Germany for treatment\u2014a chance that once felt completely out of reach. You have helped turn fear into hope and uncertainty into possibility.”<\/p>\n
“I will never be able to fully express how grateful I am for every act of kindness you\u2019ve shown me. You\u2019ve lifted a weight from my shoulders and given me the strength to keep believing, even on the hardest days. Please know that every donation, every share, every kind word, and every prayer has touched my heart more deeply than you\u2019ll ever know. I will carry your love and support with me throughout this journey and beyond. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for believing in me, standing beside me, and giving me the chance to keep fighting.”<\/p>\n
“With all my love and endless gratitude, Thank you”<\/p>\n
You can donate to support the GoFundMe campaign here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Over \u20ac60k in less than 48 hours – ‘We are overwhelmed’ 10:44, 03 Jul 2026Updated 13:20, 03 Jul…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":532323,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[14641,103,61,60],"class_list":["post-532322","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-cork-city","tag-health","tag-ie","tag-ireland"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/532322","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=532322"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/532322\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/532323"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=532322"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=532322"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=532322"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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