http://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teesside-news/2013/03/01/new-marske-family-s-lyme-disease-fight-suffers-fresh-blow-84229-32904455/
New Marske family's Lyme Disease fight suffers fresh blow
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Adelle Huckins with husband Rob and children Dexter, front, Josh and Kaitlyn
A TEESSIDE mum dogged with poor health says her daughter has been diagnosed with the same debilitating condition she suffers from.
Now she and her family are moving out of their New Marske home to help pay for their ongoing treatment, and to fund trips to Germany to get her other children tested.
The Gazette told last year how an American clinic diagnosed Adelle Huckins with Lyme Disease - a debilitating illness caused by the bacteria a tick can carry.
It’s believed Adelle’s condition stems from 1991 when, during a school trip to Germany, a tick lodged itself in her leg.
She’s since suffered a cocktail of medical problems, including joint and abdominal pain, migraines, severe fatigue and sickness, hearing difficulties, a drooping left eye, palpitations and anxiety attacks.
Because Lyme can be passed from a mother to her unborn child, Adelle and husband Rob wanted their children tested too. But because an NHS test on Adelle proved negative, she was forced to look elsewhere for a diagnosis.
The Nuffield Hospital in Newcastle sent test results off to an American specialist and they proved positive. The diagnosis has since been confirmed by a clinic in Augsburg, Germany, where Kaitlyn - who has suffered health problems for years - has also been tested.
With seven-year-old Kaitlyn having also been diagnosed as a Lyme sufferer by the same clinic, Adelle wants sons Joshua, 10, and Dexter, two, tested as well.
But to help fund it, and pay for Adelle and Kaitlyn’s ongoing treatment, the family is set to move out of their Lindrick Road home and move in with Adelle’s parents. They are also holding various fundraising events.
Adelle, 32, said: “At a time when we should be providing stability for the kids, we are having to do this. But we have to get the boys tested and pay for any treatment.”
Adelle admits Kaitlyn’s diagnosis was a “huge blow” and blames the situation on a difference in the guidelines on Lyme followed by the NHS and other countries.
She now wants the NHS to review its guidelines while she and Rob, a Virgin Media engineer, continue fundraising and spreading the word about Lyme Disease.
But she added: “Right now, I haven’t the time or energy to keep lobbying the NHS to change its stance - my concentration is on the family.”
South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust declined to comment.
For more information, search “Huckins Family Appeal” on Facebook,www.huckinsfamilyappeal.wordpress.com orwww.easyfundraising.org.uk/causes/huckinsfamily.
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