WATCH: Kingscourt double lung transplant recipient interviewed on US tv after New York Marathon

LOUISE WALSH
A BRAVE Irish mam who lost three young children to a chronic lung disease finished  the New York marathon last Sunday alongside her son, who received a double lung transplant after being diagnosed with the same condition that robbed him of his siblings.
Kathleen Crosby (61), from Kingscourt, Co. Cavan completed the arduous Big Apple challenge with her son David (42), his wife Katie and family members in aid of the Mater Hospital’s lung transplant unit. 
David amazingly undertook his first-ever marathon just 20 months after his life-saving double lung transplant - his only chance after he was diagnosed with IPF   (Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis),  an irreversible condition which causes scarring and hardening of the lungs.
Kathleen had already lost three children to the lung disorder so when David became sick, she sensed the horror had returned.
“I was devastated. It was horrendous actually.  Words couldn’t describe how bad things were that day,” she said.
“I still remember the day he came home after tests and said two words about oxygen exchange.  After that it was all a blank to me.  I kind of knew then what he had even though he told me to stop staring at him as he only had a cold.”

 

 

Kathleen and her husband Gene lost two sons and a daughter over two decades to what they now believe was the same lung condition.
“Regina was born a year after me, in 1976 and got sick ten days after birth,” explained David.
“She passed away at seven months which is tough enough to take but three years later, Paul was born and he got sick at ten days old.  He was in and out of hospital and passed away at two years of age.
“It was a breathing problem but no-one said if there was a connection between the two deaths.
“My sister Ann-Marie was born in 1982, fit and healthy and Ciaran got sick at ten days when he was born in 1985.  He was very special and was in and out of hospital for years.  He wrote a book called ‘Too Many Angels’ before he died at the age of 11.”
Remarkably Kathleen said herself and her husband had to get through it for the sake of their surviving children Ann-Marie and David.
“Once is bad, twice is terrible and then the third time was devastating altogether.  But you push on and myself and Gene stuck together and we got there but we never expected it to happen again, especially at 40 which is when David was diagnosed,” she said.
“I couldn’t believe it.  You wouldn’t wish it on anyone else.  It’s dealt to you, you deal with it and you have to deal with it and just come through it.  There’s not really anything you can do about it.  You deal with it as its going on and when it’s over, you have to pick yourself up and carry on so you can have a kind of normal life for David and Ann-Marie.”
David acknowledges his ‘amazing’ mum had a huge part to play alongside his wife Katie and his children  in his own strength and determination to get through his illness and recovery.

The family decided to stick together again in a united effort to raise funds into research to prolong the lies of organ recipients.
“We did this to raise money for the Mater Hospital’s lung transplant unit and its research in association with Cystic Fibrosis Ireland,” said David.
“I’m so grateful to everyone who helped me, from local communities to medical staff, fund-raisers and especially my family.  Every day I think of my donor who gave me a chance to live again, and I always will.
“Once you do get the privilege of a second chance, we want to ensure that your life extends for as long as possible,” said David.