Meet Manchester United mad Arthur, age 8 from Portlaoise. Completely out of the blue, last October, Arthur was diagnosed with retinoblastoma in his left eye. His family went from a diagnosis on 14th of October to being in Birmingham, having his left eye removed on 23rd October. Mum Aisling told us – “It was a complete shock of a diagnosis. We were very scared at the time that it was on his brain and his spine, but fortunately it wasn’t and thankfully we caught it in time”.
Then, in November, Arthur started his chemotherapy treatment and completed a total of four sessions. “Arthur was only 7 at the time, and between losing his eye and the chemo, it all took a huge toll on him, but he is an incredibly positive and resilient child and that stood to him”. In St John’s ward in Crumlin Children’s Hospital, Arthur’s oncologist told the family that there would be a tough journey ahead, but there would also be positive things for Arthur to look forward to. One of those things would be Arthur’s wish, and imagining all his wish possibilities helped to inspire hope and strength in Arthur.
Arthur is a loyal Man Utd fan – “when he went to Birmingham for his surgery, he brought his Man Utd blanket down to the theatre with him, and it was a great topic of conversation. That blanket went to every chemo session too. It was a topic of conversation with doctors, nurses, support staff, fellow fans, and non-fans! Arthur is such a passionate football fan, when he was being discharged from hospital in Birmingham, his surgeon asked if he had any questions and the only one he had for him was which football team do you support?”
After meeting with Arthur, we knew his wish would have to involve Manchester Utd! Arthur wished to be a mascot for a Man Utd game, and as luck would have it, the Man Utd team was travelling to Dublin on August 12th.
On the day of his wish, Arthur, his mam Aisling, dad David, brother Henry, and sister Mollie all travelled to Dublin to the fabulous Croke Park Hotel, which was a great way of building anticipation and being right in the heart of the atmosphere. Upon check-in, the family were met with a decorated suite and custom Man Utd doughnuts! The family then watched on from the Hogan Stand as they saw Arthur walk out onto the pitch, hand in hand with Man Utd Goalkeeper, Senne Lammens!
Arthur’s mam Aisling told us afterwards: “It was so special for him and for us too because he looks so strong beside the Man Utd goalie and compared to what he was like during his surgery and treatment, it struck me that he is strong now, despite all he has been through. It made me realise how important a wish is. It was everything to us as a family, to see him coming out on that pitch. Honestly, it was an incredibly emotional moment (lots of happy tears!), and we were just so overjoyed for him. And to think that not even a year ago, we were in Temple Street, not knowing what we were facing, waiting for an MRI to see the extent of the diagnosis. To think that he was now walking out as a Man Utd mascot in Croke Park, his dream come true. It was everything, it’s absolutely everything and we are eternally grateful to ‘Make A Wish Ireland’ for making this happen for Arthur.”
