Newport parents plea for funds to help son to walk (From South Wales Argus)

Newport parents plea for funds to help son to walk

10:02am Wednesday 17th October 2012 in News

THE parents of a two-yearold boy who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy need help to teach their son how to walk.

Little Leo Dixon was born six weeks early and cannot walk, crawl or sit comfortably.

In February Leo underwent a series of tests and was eventually diagnosed with cerebral palsy and spastic diplegia.

But parents Kate, 28, and Mike Dixon, 36, from Newport are determined to remain positive and help Leo to learn to walk.

Mrs Dixon said: “We have looked into a lot of different treatments, which aren’t available on the NHS, but we are remaining positive, and doing a lot of fundraising. We’ve raised about £3,000 so far.

“Leo already has physiotherapy, hydrotherapy and speech therapy, and while it’s great, it’s limited.

“Ideally, we want Leo to undergo selective dorsal rhizotomy (SDR), where spasticitycausing nerves are destroyed, which we would have to go to America for.

“The operation has a 100 per cent success rate and is £60,000, so we need to raise between £60,000 and £70,000.

“While that’s a lot of money, it’s a small price if it would allow Leo the independence to walk.

“But we have been told Leo is currently too weak to have the operation, so we have to raise money to strengthen him up first.”

She said a fundraising dinner party in the Celtic Manor, Newport, on November 24 is for 250 people, and they have already sold 100 tickets.

“It’s a three-course dinner, with live music, auction and raffle.

We’ve got some really great prizes which have been donated, including holidays, VIP concert tickets to see Elbow, £200 worth of Benefit cosmetics, a hair make-over, signed rugby shirts and boxing gloves. It’s £50 per person, but businesses and groups can buy a table for £500.”

To book tickets, for updates on Leo’s progress or to make a donation, visit www.helpleowalk.co.uk