Brave little Mercy was a fighter to the end, say grieving parents after daughter loses battle with brain cancer
AT just six years old, little Mercy Cuthbertson could light up the room with her infectious laugh and amazing dance moves.
Even after she was diagnosed with a rare, inoperable brain tumour which led to three surgeries, 28 radiotherapy sessions and intense physiotherapy, her positive attitude shone through.
And that is why she captured the hearts of so many people — including YOU, our readers — leading to a £100,000 fundraising target being smashed for her medical treatment, care and specialist equipment.
But tragically, despite exploring every avenue possible, Mercy passed away last Sunday in the arms of her devoted parents, Paul and Lorraine.
Now, despite their overwhelming grief, the couple have vowed that Mercy’s legacy will live on.
They plan to set up a charity, Mercy’s Mighty Foundation, to support other families facing the same life-shattering pain as them.
Lorraine, 43, from North Tyneside, says: “The grief is horrific but we have gratitude for the six glorious years we had with Mercy.
“We were so grateful to call her our daughter and she was utterly adored by us.
“She was brilliant. Nobody can ever take that from us and that is keeping me strong. If I didn’t have that, I would crumble to the floor and not get back up.”
Lorraine told how she and Paul comforted Mercy in her final days, along with their pet dogs.
‘She didn’t suffer’
She recalls: “During her last six days with us it was just me, Paul and our bichon puppies, Teddy and Coco Junior, with her at home, constantly touching her, so she knew she was never alone.
“The hospital staff came and put her on machines to keep her out of pain. She didn’t suffer and we take great comfort from that.”
Paul adds: “In her last couple of days all she wanted was her puppies. They never left her side. They were right there with her when she went to that better place.”
After nursing their daughter through her illness, Lorraine told how it is the little things that hammer home their grief.
She explains: “I saw her wheelchair last night and broke down as the grief and trauma we have experienced over the past nine months hit me. It happens to us when we least expect it.”
The couple, both police officers, say they will be “forever thankful” for the support Mercy received from our readers.
Paul, 53, explains: “We know that, without the support, the love and the fundraising from so many, we wouldn’t have been able to give Mercy the best quality of life until the very last minute.
I saw her wheelchair last night and broke down as the grief and trauma we have experienced over the past nine months hit me
Lorraine Cuthbertson
“We had cared for her 24/7 for nine months and wanted to do everything possible for her.”
Where your cash will go
LORRAINE and Paul honoured their vow to help sick kids with money remaining in Mercy’s fund by donating to Abbie’s Army and The Brain Tumour Charity.
The couple have made substantial cash pledges in their daughter’s name.
Abbie’s Army is a children’s diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma research charity, founded by parents of Abbie Mifsud, who died shortly after diagnosis aged six.
The Brain Tumour Charity is the world’s leading good cause of its kind and the largest funder of global research into the illness.
The Sun on Sunday started fundraising for Mercy in January.
We told how last July she suddenly stopped “racing” around the family home and began feeling tired and dizzy, not even wanting to play.
Lorraine, a chief inspector, and Paul, a constable, took her to their GP and she was referred for tests, which revealed her tumour.
Radiotherapy started within weeks because the growth had already affected her vision and mobility.
Mercy then needed a wheelchair and became too sick to go to school. Her aggressive tumour was a diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG), which can manifest quickly between the ages of five and ten.
It affects only about 20 to 30 children in Britain each year and does not respond well to chemotherapy.
Donations poured in from Mercy’s community, her parents’ police colleagues and companies including SCS and Tesco.
It meant that for six months she could take a drug called ONC201, which was shipped from abroad in a bid to prolong her life.
As the fundraising target was smashed, it meant Lorraine and Paul could explore overseas treatment options, such as clinical trials.
Mercy’s TV idols, Ant and Dec, shot a video sending her love and kisses and the young train fanatic enjoyed days out including a journey to Edinburgh in March, thanks to rail firm Lumo.
But Lorraine says: “Not long after, she started using her wheelchair more and we were carrying her around a lot.
“Two weeks ago, a charity arranged for us to go to a caravan specially adapted for families in our position. She loved it because it had an amusement arcade on site.
[The treatment in Switzerland] would have put her through so much pain and the swelling could have killed her
Lorraine Cuthbertson
“But while there, we noticed she wasn’t using her left arm as much. Then she went downhill so, so fast.”
The family had planned to take Mercy for specialist radiotherapy in Zurich, Switzerland.
But Lorraine admits: “We woke up one morning and realised it was too much.
“It would have put her through so much pain and the swelling could have killed her.
‘She made us so proud’
“We phoned the consultant and she agreed we were acting in Mercy’s best interests.
“We continued on the ONC and accessed a special steroid infusion. But it didn’t work.”
Now Lorraine and Paul have had to face the agonising task of arranging their daughter’s funeral.
The grieving mum says: “There will be flowers shaped like life-sized bichon puppies and pink bows, as she loved them in her hair.
“Mercy is having four horses and we will play the Titanic tune, Nearer My God To Thee and her favourite song, Touch Me by Rui Da Silva, that she loved to dance to.
“We are not having a small, private funeral as we feel like Mercy is not just ours. People across the country took her into their hearts.”
Mercy’s might was utterly amazing and she made us so, so proud
Lorraine Cuthbertson
Wellwishers are already fundraising for Mercy’s Mighty Foundation, including the family’s local high school, which is holding a special non-uniform day.
Paul says: “Mercy never complained. She just got on with it, remaining determined, resilient and positive until the end.
“She could put some adults to shame.
“Mercy’s might was utterly amazing and she made us so, so proud.
“We will never let her down with the legacy we create in her name.”
- To help provide respite for paediatric brain tumour families through Mercy’s Mighty Foundation, visit justgiving.com/crowdfunding/lorraine-cuthbertson? utm_id=1&utm_term=bQB8RKPMe.