Derbyshire teacher’s desperate bid to save young daughter by raising £500,000 for life-saving cancer treatment

Baby Winnie Impey was just 11-months-old when she was diagnosed with infant leukaemia in June 2021 after her tooth began to grow at a strange angle.

The very rare and serious type of cancer affects blood cells and, at the point of diagnosis, has only a 50 per cent survival rate.

Winnie, who will mark her second birthday next month, has been in remission twice but has since relapsed with a more aggressive form of the disease – and the NHS can no longer offer treatment to cure her, only to prolong her life.

However there is treatment available abroad if her parents Lucy and Luke, who live in Mapperley, can fund it themselves.

Lucy, a psychology teacher who has previously taught at Heanor Gate Academy, and Luke, who works for Derbyshire County Council, have now set up a Go Fund Me page in the fight against time to secure the vital money.

Lucy said: “I hate to ask strangers for money for my daughter but she is the most wonderful, kind little girl who has had the most difficult year. I know this treatment has worked for others and I need to give her this chance. I can’t lose my baby.”

The hope is to raise £500,000 for the urgent pioneering CAR-T therapy abroad in either Singapore, Spain or Germany.

More than 1,000 people donated in the first weekend, with the current total raised standing at £38,631 as of Tuesday, May 10.

Lucy added “I am so thankful to anyone who supports us.”

Winne has endured both chemotherapy and immunotherapy during her battle against leukaemia.

After the cancer returned for a second time, she was deemed to be high risk and also underwent a bone marrow transplant which the family were told would have a 75 per cent of curing her.

Lucy said the youngster “did really well following transplant and recovered quickly” only to relapse three months later.

“We had a meeting where the consultant basically said we had very few options and this is now a very difficult disease,” she added.

“A few days later we had a call that Winnie’s leukaemia was expressing a marker called CD7 and there was a CD7 CAR-T trial in the UK. There were two people ahead but if we could keep her healthy till then it was her best bet at cure.

“However a few days later we were told that Winnie’s leukaemia doesn’t fit the trial.

“We were told her chance of survival is now very poor without this treatment and so were given the option of more chemotherapy or to take her home and wait for the leukaemia to take over.

"We immediately started the Go Fund Me page in the hope of giving her a chance of beating this.

“She is a wonderful little girl. So engaged and great speech. Despite the year she’s had since she was diagnosed in June she is developing amazingly.

"She is definitely a bossy little character with a great sense of humour and loves being with her family and running around exploring.”

To support Winnie’s fundraiser click here.

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