OUR OWN STORY



Niven and Sara Whatley began running Ailsa’s Aim as a charitable cause in 2019, to repay those who have helped us and to support and offer care packs to others who are going through or helping with medical issues similar to those we ourselves have faced.

In 2018, having struggled for 6 years to conceived, we were finally successful with IVF treatment, and Sara got pregnant with our beautiful baby daughter, Ailsa – the inspiration for our charity’s name! Since the start of the pregnancy, however, we have experienced some extreme highs and lows in life and have had personal cause to be extremely grateful to any number of people and medical organisations.

At 12 weeks of pregnancy, Gestational Diabetes was diagnosed and Sara had to self-inject insulin: thus commenced a tough balancing act between taking in enough nutrients to support the developing baby and limiting the dangerous levels of sugar in her system. Furthermore, an unexpected and sinister-looking cyst was spotted around 20 weeks, growing alongside the foetus. 

At 23 weeks, the diabetes was having secondary effects on Sara’s hypertension and the cyst had grown exponentially to 12x12x10cm and created bladder and bowel blockages. These symptoms were now additionally accompanied by abdominal torsion and anaemia. There were lots of other symptoms, like bloating, rapid size changes and tiredness, but doctors put it all down to pregnancy complications. 

At the premature birth and subsequent 4 hour operation, Ailsa was rushed to SCBU and Sara’s Consultant confirmed the devastating news that the cyst was a rare and little-known form of cancer. He therefore referred her to Professor Seckl in Charing Cross hospital, who finally managed to diagnose her with three forms of extremely rare ovarian cancers – all of which had reached advanced stages and begun to spread. 

Sara was admitted for intensive chemotherapy and several blood transfusions at Charing Cross Hospital in London on 7th January 2019, when Ailsa was just 4 weeks old and just out of Special Care. She was told the course would be gruelling and would last for a full 5 months at least, but that it was urgently needed. Niven then spent the next 5 months running between helping in hospitals with Sara and doing the childcare for the newly born and under-weight baby, Ailsa.

Nevertheless, and thanks to Sara’s strength and determination, the motivation of looking after little Ailsa, and the skill, care and expertise of the NHS, Ailsa has grown into a healthy and happy little toddler and Sara has recovered incredibly well and is in full remission.

Sara has missed a huge chunk of Ailsa’s early days, but thankfully she now has the energy and enthusiasm again to carry on with daily life and the challenges and rewards of parenthood.

Through all of this, we have been so blessed and well-supported, and are truly humble and thankful.

As an established charity our aim is to raise funds and awareness and to provide support, signposting and essential care packs to people from all aspects of our journey, as well as to the carers and staff who work tirelessly to make sure that everyone experiencing similar challenges to those we faced, are supported in the best possible way.

We have already completed a series of successful campaigns together, with patients, families and professionals in more than 10 partner hospitals across the UK, and are working to support more and more everyday.

We have taken on premises at Market Place in Olney, secured the essential care items needed for our next campaigns and are in talks with a number of other medical and community services further afield, with the intention of helping to offer more support to more people.

We are now in a position to seek donations, volunteer assistance and new liaisons with support organisations, both local and national, so that we can continue to build on the early work we have done.

Any support, financial or otherwise, from our local communities would be very much appreciated.