Jaimee-Louise Sharp, the daughter-in-law of former England footballer Paul Gascoigne, is raising £320,516 to access a clinical trial in the United States after being diagnosed with an aggressive and incurable form of brain cancer.
The 28-year-old is in a long-term relationship with Gascoigne’s son, Mason, and they have a five-year-old son, Teddy. Jaimee is appealing for donations to help her ‘fight for more time’ with her child.
She shared the ‘devastating news’ on social media after initially keeping her diagnosis within the family. She has since been offered a ‘rare opportunity’ to take part in a clinical trial at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Ohio.
Jaimee has been diagnosed with IDH1-Mutant, CNS WHO grade 4 Astrocytoma, a form of brain cancer. She says there is ‘no cure’ and that the ‘median survival rate is about five years’.
Writing on her GoFundMe page, Jaimee said she has undergone ‘major brain surgery’ to remove as much of the tumour as possible. She is now receiving radiotherapy and chemotherapy.
“Unfortunately, with this type of cancer, even after the standard treatment the tumour is aggressive and fast growing,” she wrote on Instagram.
“I desperately want more time with my little boy. Being Teddy’s mummy is my whole reason for existence. And I’m not ready to say goodbye.
“But for the first time since my diagnosis, I’ve been given a glimmer of hope.”
Jaimee has been offered a place on the ‘TarGet-D clinical trial’ at Ohio’s Nationwide Children’s Hospital. The two-year study will investigate the drug Olutasidenib ‘for IDH1-Mutant high grade Gliomas like mine’.
“Finding a trial that matches my exact cancer, mutation and stage of treatment is incredibly difficult,” she continued on GoFundMe.
“There is no guarantee another suitable option will come at the right time. If there is even a possibility this treatment could give me more time with Teddy, I need to know I tried.”
The family has four weeks to raise the money. The target will cover travel between the UK and the US, with Jaimee expected to return monthly throughout the two-year trial.
The fundraising total includes the cost of ‘approximately 21 return flights’, accommodation, travel insurance, specialist insurance linked to her cancer and ‘any unforeseen costs that may arise throughout two years of constant international travel’.
“£320,516 is an amount of money I never imagined I would have to ask people to help me raise,” she wrote. “I wish more than anything I didn’t have to.”
Although Jaimee accepts there is ‘no cure’, she says the trial offers ‘an opportunity for more time’.
“I need to watch my sons smiles and laughter on more Christmas mornings. To be there for more birthdays, and to watch him become the young man I’ve always imagined,” she wrote.
“I’m not asking one person to make this possible. I’m asking as many people as possible to help in whatever way they can.”
Mason, who was adopted by Gascoigne when he married Mason’s mother, Sheryl, has also appealed for support on Instagram.
“We just need your help to just share this as far and wide as it possibly can go,” he said.
“We’re trying to achieve this goal so we can have the time we deserve with her and she has time she deserves with her five-year-old boy so please like, share and donate as much as you can.
“I know time’s are hard but we appreciate it, even if it’s a pound. I just wanna say thank you to everyone.”
