Arsenal star Aubameyang pays £2,000 for four-year-old girl to get treatment for unknown genetic disorder
ARSENAL captain Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has paid for a little girl to get treatment for an unknown genetic condition.
The striker, 31, has been touched by little Ivy Hayward, four, who suffers from a developmental disorder.
The condition – still yet to be diagnosed by doctors despite extensive testing – has left her unable to sit, talk or walk on her own.
In a desperate bid to raise funds for Ivy, her family set up a GoFundMe page asking for £5,000 so they could pay for pioneering treatment.
After managing to raise around £3,000, family-man Aubameyang – who has two sons, Curtys, 9, and Pierre Jr, 4 – then put in a £2,000 donation to ensure the family had reached their target.
Since his gesture, a following £1,090 has been raised, taking the total to £6,090.
On the GoFundMe page, it’s explained there is no ‘magic pill’ to fix Ivy.
Instead, her family will put all the money raised towards ‘much-needed therapy sessions, equipment and assistive technology’.
As well as weekly physiotherapy sessions to help with Ivy’s ‘mobility and strength’, the family hope to get her an Ikan brace – a full-body device to assist her with standing and walking.
The Ikan brace alone costs £1,700 – more than covered by Arsenal skipper Aubameyang‘s generous donation.
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On the GoFundMe page, the family explain the symptoms, writing: “Hi, my name is Ivy, I have just turned 4yrs old and I need your help :).
“I was born a very happy little baby but as the months went by my mum started to notice that some things were not quite right, I was not meeting my milestones and I was still like a floppy noodle.
“When I was around 16months old I massively regressed and everything I had learnt sadly disappeared.
“I created an ivy bubble as I could no longer understand the world around me.
“We’ve seen many health professionals and after a long journey of allllll the testing, MRI’s and biopsies we are still none the wiser.
“I am still non-verbal and unable to be consistent with my communication.
“I have global development delay of around a 1yr old, sensory processing disorder which means the pathways from my mind to body are a little disconnected and severe hypotonia, this is what causes me to be very floppy.
“I am still unable to sit and play, crawl or weight bare which means I need constant support with all aspects of my life.”
After revealing their three-pronged treatment strategy, the family’s post finishes by saying: “Any donation, big or small, would be truly appreciated and you would be helping a very special little girl.”