fight for life: Bob Knight and Jess Heard with their son, Tommi, who is due to return to Peru for life-saving treatment.
TOMMI Knight’s November trip to Peru has been given a $6000 boost after an appearance on the ABC’s Jon Faine show.Tommi’s mother Jess Heard appeared on the Melbourne radio show yesterday morning, talking about her one-year-old’s battle with Tay-Sachs Disease.Tommi is Australia’s only current sufferer of the illness, which will cause him to go floppy, blind, deaf and paralysed and reduces his life expectancy to about five years.However, Tommi has already had experimental stem-cell treatment in Peru, which has enabled him to say his first word, “Dada,” and to laugh and smile.He is due to return to Peru on November 14, but Jess and her partner, Bob Knight, have been faced with funding difficulties.“My uncle contacted him (Jon Faine) and they put me on the next day,” Jess said.“I thought he’d just ask me a couple of questions but I was on for half an hour.”More than $6000 poured into the station in the hour after Jess’s appearance.“Someone has even offered to pay our airfares but we’re still probably about $5000 short.”Jess and Tommi also appeared in other metropolitan media yesterday after their plight was aired on the ABC. However, Jess said they had been very saddened by the weekend passing of American Tay-Sachs Disease sufferer, Aspen Brown, whose plight had inspired them to try the stem-cell treatment.Aspen was also in Peru in August having her third stem-cell treatment when Tommi went for his first round.“I was just devastated when I heard.”But Jess said it wouldn’t stop them persevering with the radical treatment.“She received different treatment to what Tommi started with. You just have to keep trying everything.” Anyone who can contribute to the fundraising effort for Tommi can contact Jess on 0413?398?055.