'It has brought tears to my eyes': Family of brave cancer patient thanks Cork 

THE grandmother of a two-year-old boy battling stage-four cancer has said his family will never be able to repay the people of Cork for their generosity.

Rio McCarthy-Andrews was diagnosed last autumn with stage-four, high-risk neuroblastoma, a rare and aggressive childhood cancer.

Rio, who lives in Surrey, is the son of Don McCarthy, who is originally from Cork, and his wife, Vickie Andrews.

Rio’s grandmother, Cork solicitor Angela McCarthy, told The Echo that Rio’s family has been moved to tears by the kindness of the people of Cork, who have contributed more than €25,000 to a fundraiser to pay for potentially lifesaving treatment for Rio in the US.

“The most uplifting thing for the family, apart from Rio’s recovering bit by bit, has been the support of people, in Cork in particular. I’ve often heard it said that Cork is great to support people, but it has brought tears to my eyes many a night how well they’ve done,” Ms McCarthy said.

In late 2022, Rio’s parents noticed that their little boy, a happy and playful child who loves cars and adores playing with his older sister, Lillyrose, was having trouble hearing. He was diagnosed with ‘glue ear’, a condition that causes the middle part of the ear canal to fill up with fluid, which often results in temporary hearing loss.

After being fitted with grommets, Rio’s hearing improved and he was soon learning to talk.

However, in August of last year, Rio’s parents noticed that he lacked appetite and energy, and that his bones were painful. Because of his delayed speech development, Rio was unable to articulate to his parents the pain he was feeling.

“He couldn’t say where the pain was, so it was very difficult to examine him, because he was crying at every touch and every move, and he was miserable, the poor little fellow,” his grandmother said.

For two months, Rio was in and out of his local hospital, with symptoms including a spiking temperatures, a limp, loss of appetite, and a refusal to eat. An apparent blocked kidney led to hospitalisation, but further scans revealed that he had a large tumour on the adrenal gland near his right kidney.

Rio was diagnosed with the stage-four, high-risk neuroblastoma, a rare and aggressive childhood cancer, which requires an extremely tough course of treatment.

“He also has it, unfortunately, in his cranium, in his bone marrow, in his skeletal frame in several places. It’s very advanced, it seems to have swept through him in just a few months,” Ms McCarthy said.

Over the past few months, Rio has had repeated rounds of chemotherapy, followed by surgery, radiotherapy, stem cell transplants, and he is now facing further treatment.

Rio’s family has been told that he has a 40% to 50% chance of long-term survival, and they are now fundraising for the potentially lifesaving treatment in the US.

The cost of Rio’s treatment will be approximately €350,740 and, so far, his family has raised over £60,000 (approximately €71,000) in the UK and over €25,000 in Ireland.

A fundraising ball in the Maryborough House Hotel on Saturday, February 17, has been sold out, but anyone wishing to contribute to Rio’s fund can go to gofundme.com online and search “Baby Rio”.