The family of an IMPACT member and activist, Mary Gorman, is calling on the Irish public to sign a petition to get her urgent medical treatment.

Mary is from Co. Laois and worked as a physiotherapy manager until she was forced to retire due to ill-health. She was diagnosed with an ultra-rare and life-threatening blood disorder called Paroxysmal Nocturnal Haemoglobinuria (PNH) in October 2012. Without treatment, the disorder can shorten life expectancy to between five and ten years. Since her diagnosis, Mary has suffered from acute kidney damage.

The medication Mary needs is the only known medication available worldwide for her condition. There are ten people already fully funded for this medication in Ireland. Mary has been waiting almost two years and her condition is deteriorating.

IMPACT deputy general secretary Kevin Callinan has appealed to IMPACT members to support the petition. “At this extremely difficult time for Mary and her family, I am asking IMPACT members to sign this petition and show their solidarity” he said.

You can sign the petition here.