Dying mum's 62,000 reasons to say thank you
Generous friends, family and strangers have raised an incredible £62,000 for a dying Exeter mum - in a matter of weeks.
Jo Smith is currently travelling with her best friend Sarah Lacey to Arizona by sea and land in a desperate bid to find a cure for her two terminal conditions.
She needs £70,000 for the trip and her treatment and her YOUCARING site is now close to the target.
A friend of Jo told the Exeter Daily she would be bowled over by the amount raised.
The friend added: "The kindness of people who don't even know Jo has been incredible. This trip offers no gurantees but it is the only hope she has right now. I know she would like to say thank you to you all."
Jo is the only person in the world with two rare terminal conditions where treating one would mean the other will kill her.
The 37-year-old suffers from a blood vessel disorder called pulmonary hypertension and has lymphatic cancer. Baffled doctors say that the odds of suffering from both is over 5 billion-to-one.
Jo, who lives near Stoke Cannon, can't have a heart and lung transplant, the only cure for pulmonary hypertension, because the anti rejection medication she would have to take would cause the cancer to grow rapidly.
Previous attempts to save Jo have so far proved unsuccessful, including flying to Thailand to receive medical treatment which did not materialise, and appealing to the public for suggestions of help.
But her hopes were raised when an opportunity came to visit renowned scientist Thomas Incledon who will carry out hundreds of tests to find out the root cause of her illness and devise an individualised treatment plan. Thomas will be introducing Jo to some of the best medical doctors in the world, who will work along side him to help Jo.
However, she needs to raise £70,000 to make the trip and pay the medical fees.
If you would like to help save Jo's life, you can make a donation here: https://www.youcaring.com/jo-smith-447797
See also: Dying Jo makes a video in her appeal for help: http://www.theexeterdaily.co.uk/news/business-daily-local-news/dying-jo-...
