A 12-year-old girl was robbed of her childhood and forced to undergo several rounds of chemotherapy due to a misdiagnosis.
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For seven years, Faye Condon underwent six rounds of chemotherapy, home injections and a muscle biopsy to address what doctors initially diagnosed as Juvenile Dermatomyositis (JDM) at age 5, according to the UK news agency SWNS. The England-born child later became wheelchair-bound as her condition worsened.
However, Faye spent nearly a decade receiving treatment for the wrong ailment.
Christina Condon, Faye's mother, became leery of her daughter's recovery process and wanted doctors at Bristol Children's Hospital (BCH) to test for other diseases.
Faye was later re-diagnosed with de novo Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy (EDMD) type 2 by Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), a specialist children's hospital located in London.
Christina, 36, spoke of how the misdiagnosis prevented her daughter from experiencing a less turbulent childhood.
"If we had the correct diagnosis seven years ago when Faye was able to walk, we could have gone on holiday and had more fun with her before she was wheelchair bound. We put our lives on hold because we were always told she was going to get better," Christina told SWNS.
According to the Mayo Clinic, there is no cure for EDMD. Plus, the changes the muscle undergoes are permanent.
Therefore, all of the treatment she received was in vain.
Budget Restrictions Allegedly Led to Misdiagnosis
Christina said that Faye could not walk 200 yards to school and would randomly fall over. Eager to find a remedy, Christina took Faye to the hospital in 2019 for testing.
Faye was prescribed medicine, but Christina said her daughter's condition did not improve.
"Everyone could see there was something wrong, but no one wanted to take responsibility for her and do more tests, as tests cost money," Christina told the outlet.
The worried mother alleged that budget restrictions played a hand in her daughter's misdiagnosis.
"The staff at the hospital were very vocal about a financial fight about which department would pay for testing. But as parents, we shouldn't be hearing that.
"Every test for the autoimmune disease was negative. Not a single test they did pointed towards JDM.
"She even had a muscle biopsy which pointed to a congenital muscle disease. Not an autoimmune disease. But that was overlooked."
Christina said that all Faye needed to do was take a blood test with specific genetic testing, but claimed that BCH never requested it.
"Those doctors ruined my little girl's whole childhood. I feel so let down by everybody," she told SWNS.
She described her daughter as a "ticking time bomb", adding that her heart could stop "at any minute." Faye now also uses a ventilator at night.
Christina is now planning to take legal action against Bristol Children's Hospital, which made the initial diagnosis.
