Family HandoutA fundraiser has been set up to help a schoolgirl who was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of heart cancer after she returning from holiday.
Lexi Collins was starting to feel weak and noticed issues with her heart when she returned home from the family trip.
Doctors soon discovered that there was a tumour on the 13-year-old’s heart and opted to carry out open heart surgery to fit a pacemaker.
In the meantime, a biopsy on the tumour was also conducted to identify the severity of the growth.
In June this year, the family were told that the schoolgirl had stage four cardiac angiosarcoma, which originates from the cells lining blood vessels within the organ.
Angiosarcomas can occur in the skin, breasts, internal organs, bones, and the body’s deep tissues, however, it is very rare that they appear on the heart.
Due to the scarcity of the condition, it is impossible to say how many people are diagnosed with cardiac angiosarcoma in the UK each year.
Family HandoutLexi’s dad Stuart says the moment doctors revealed the seriousness of the tumour was a “blur”.
The ex-military man told STV News: “The first thing that came to my head was how can I make this better as a parent.
“When we were told Lexi was still in ICU, which was tough. Going to see her for the first time after we were told was not good.
“It was really difficult, but, we came together for Lexi. She hasn’t asked why these people are being so supportive.
“Lexi has just got on with it and been so strong. She has attacked this head on and I am very proud of her. She is my hero.”
The Connah’s Quay teen has since undergone three rounds of chemotherapy, which has shrunk the tumour.
NHS medical teams have also been in close contact with specialists in the US to discuss ways of treating the rare condition.
Lexi’s step-mum, Louise Collins, from Bathgate, has set up a GoFundMe to cover the costs of treatment overseas.
The family is exploring Transarterial Chemoembolization, a treatment available in Germany, which is used to directly administer chemotherapy to a tumour.
Family HandoutIn the UK the procedure is only used for patients who have liver cancer. Internet personality Ethan Payne, who is a member of YouTube group the Sidemen, has donated £5,000 to the fundraiser.
James Cordon also sent a message of support to Lexi and promised to meet up with her once she is feeling better. Stuart’s beloved West Ham also shared the fundraiser on their YouTube channel which resulted in more donations being made.
The teen’s dad said: “Everybody has been amazing.
“From work to strangers, even my regiment got back from a six month tour in Estonia and had a Lexi day, running marathon’s on treadmills, rowing and all sorts of things to raise money.
“There has been lots of people in the Bathgate community that have donated, a lot of them I’ve never met before.
“We have been blown away.”
Stuart says he has been left incredibly “proud” by the way his “loving and caring” daughter has faced the cancer diagnosis.
He added: “Recently she told me that she wants to give money left over from the fundraiser to help those in Gaza.
“Which I thought was amazing for a 13-year-old to say. A lot of people around her think the world of her.
“Lexi will be even stronger once she gets through this.”
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