Dad’s plea for pioneering treatment to save his life

A Galway secondary school teacher and father of twin toddlers is trying to raise €100,000 to pay for treatment abroad that could save his life.

Mark Hayes is originally from Athlone but he and wife Marie settled in the townland of Kilmacduagh, near Shrule on the Galway-Mayo border.

Having waited for twelve years to become parents, they only had their twin girls for three months in September 2017 when he was given a devastating diagnosis.

Doctors told him he had colorectal cancer and would need immediate radiation and chemotherapy.

Five months later, he underwent surgery to remove a tumour. But it was far from plain sailing. He developed a serious post-operative infection and had to have follow-up chemotherapy.

By November he was told in an oncology review that the cancer had spread to his liver. He had to face into months of chemotherapy before enduring another operation to remove tumours, this time on his liver, last May.

“As he was recovering, and thinking they could finally begin to enjoy life with their girls, they were hit with yet another recurrence of liver metastases in August of this year,” explained his sister-in-law Loretta Evans.

“He has endured so much surgery and chemotherapy and his treatment options are now limited. Throughout all of this, Mark has remained extremely positive and is determined to persist with all possible treatments to continue to be a loving and supportive husband and an amazing daddy to his girls.”

The 41-year-old teacher at Merlin College in Doughiska is hoping to try a new type of treatment currently not available in Ireland or the UK.

See full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune. You can donate by searching ‘Mark Hayes’ on Gofundme.

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