"They can put happiness back on my son's face": Luton family's desperate plea for help to fund son's life-changing surgery
The parents of a Luton boy have made a plea for help as they try to fundraise for surgery to “save his foot”.
At just one day old, Kacper Mietusiewicz had life-saving surgery at Great Ormond Street Hospital, after he was diagnosed with spina bifida.
Just before his fifth birthday, his parents noticed that his right foot was starting to deform and turned into a club foot – a complication from spina bifida.
Specialists at the Luton and Dunstable Hospital placed casts on his leg in a bid to straighten his foot, but after numerous cast and splint changes, it was clear that surgery was needed.
But with the current NHS waiting times, it was likely that this operation would be years away. Kacper wears a brace to help him walk, but this won’t solve the problem.
Dad Jakub, said: “Every time he gets worse, he will have another series of cast on. He wants to be like every other kid.”
Jakub and his wife, Karolina, found a specialist doctor in Vienna who could save Kacper’s foot.
He explained: “Kacper needs [surgery] as soon as possible, so there won't be any more deformation in his foot. It's in Austria, so it will have to be done privately.”
The family have started a fundraising page with a £20,000 goal for the surgery and £3,800 has been donated already.
For his parents, it is devastating to see their son miss out on things in his childhood. Dad said: “He's not able to do a lot of stuff when it comes to sports. He’s always trying. He never says no.
“It’s devastating. It puts me into tears when he can't do stuff that he wants to do.”
Surgery would mean that Kacper could run around, play with his friends, ride a bike and kick a football like his heroes at Luton Town FC.
Even something as simple as buying shoes is a challenge.
Jakub explained: “Every time we go out to try and buy shoes for Casper is mission impossible. We have to buy two different sizes because the brace is making his foot bigger.
"Walking around without pain is priceless.”
Jakub added: “With people's help, they can put happiness back on my son's face.”