A DUBLIN teenager is singing the praises of doctors in Newcastle who saved his life as a child.
Now 16, Tim Coyne is studying to become a sound engineer, leading a normal life enjoying his favourite pastimes from music and theatre to sailing.
But just over a decade ago that didn’t seem possible when, before his fourth birthday, he was diagnosed with Chronic Granulomatous Disorder (CGD).
The life-threatening condition left his immune system in tatters and threatened to cut his life short.
Vulnerable to major infections due to a faulty bone marrow gene, he contracted pneumonia and was on a constant stream of antibiotics.
This left him unable to enjoy the carefree dad-to-day life of a normal child - something his mum Joan Coyne described as terrifying.
“The whole experience was such a scary time for us a family. Gerry, my husband, and I, were back and forward between Newcastle and Dublin all the time, and Tim’s older sister, Tess, found it so tough too,” the B&B owner said.
“We all lived minute to minute and before then, I’d never realised just how precious a single second can be.”
The family credits the pioneering work of medics at Newcastle’s Bubble Foundation with saving the life of their son, who was treated there for four months in 2007 when he was just eight years old.
As one of only two specialised centres in Britain, the foundation was set up over 20 years ago to fund research into conditions like CGD and other rare immune deficiencies as well as leukaemia and childhood arthritis.
Paediatric consultant Professor Andrew Cant, who treated Tim, said: “Children with PID (Primary immune deficiency) are often a rather forgotten group, even though around one in every 500 babies is born with some form of immune deficiency. We’ve come a long way, but there’s still a huge amount to do.”
Since the Bubble Foundation was founded, survival rates have increased from 50 to around 90 per cent through their work in partnership with the Children’s Bone Marrow Transplant Unit, at the Great North Children’s Hospital in Newcastle.
Children are treated in a specialised eight foot square ‘bubble’ of clean air - known as sterile isolation - for up to six months.
But the only life-saving treatment for CGD - Tim’s condition - is a bone marrow transplant.
Thankfully, he was eventually matched with a donor from the US, becoming only the 17th in the world to have the treatment.
“Even though I know now that I was seriously ill when I was in The Bubble, I never really considered the enormity of it at the time and do have happy memories of my time in Newcastle,” Tim said this week.
“All the staff were great, I think they do such an amazing job. Without The Bubble, I wouldn’t be where I am today – on the road to becoming a sound engineer, which is something I’ve always wanted to do.”
Mum Joan added: “His bone marrow transplant took place on Friday 13th, which proved to be such a lucky day for us.
"Even so, day three came round and I was just wishing it was day 23 more than anything, so we’d know whether the transplant had been a success, as it takes 20 days to know.
“When we heard Tim’s bone marrow had taken, I can’t even describe how I felt. I texted all my family and friends at the same time to let them know, and remember saying, ‘I see we’ve won the Lotto’.
“Inside though, it was way more than that – and so much better. When you’ve been through the most tense, fragile experience possible, the elation you feel to get that news is beyond anything.”
After the transplant, Tim moved into a half-way house before eventually being allowed back home to Ireland in July 2007.
He now only needs one yearly check-up in Britain.
“He has never looked back,” his mum said. “He was one of the lucky ones. He got through everything so well.
“It was still scary when we left the security of The Bubble, but in time, we found our way back to normal life.
“I’ll be forever indebted to the amazing staff. If Tim had been born 20 years ago, I don’t know where we’d be today – but because of The Bubble’s live-saving work, he’s doing so well.”
The Bubble Foundation has just launched a fundraising appeal – Bubbles for The Bubble – which challenges people to show their bubbly side and donate to the charity. You can donate HERE or by texting BUBB01 (+ amount you want to donate from £1 to £10) to 70070.
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