Six-year-old cancer patient targeted by anti-immigration trolls

  • 15/07/2016
Madison celebrates her birthday in hospital
Madison celebrates her birthday in hospital

A six-year-old New Zealand girl has become the target for anti-immigration trolls after she was flown across the world for a life-saving operation.

Madison Merrick has been living in the United Kingdom, where she has been receiving medical treatment since 2013, when she was three years old.

Madison was born with her bowel outside her body. In 2012, her mother Alana Merrick was told Madison needed a small intestine transplant, and that the surgery couldn't be performed in New Zealand.

Six-year-old cancer patient targeted by anti-immigration trolls

Madison in the arms of her mother, Alana. (Facebook)

The New Zealand Ministry of Health granted $1 million toward her treatment in the UK, where Merrick and Madison have been ever since.

Shortly after receiving the transplant surgery, Madison's family was dealt another blow. The child had PTLD, a type of cancer linked to transplants, and would need extensive treatment.

Madison was treated with chemotherapy for seven months, before being given the all clear in October.

Madison ringing the “end of treatment” bell in November.

But despite Madison's treatment being funded by the New Zealand government, the child and her mother have been targeted with anti-immigration vitriol.

One woman wrote "Don’t forget to thank the British taxpayer whose money you used to fund the treatment? [sic]. God bless your little girl & I don’t wish her ill at all, indeed I wish her well, but we have our own children who are desperate for medical treatments that our NHS [National Health Service] can’t fund because of immigrants who come here to take advantage."

In response, Ms Merrick wrote that, "At the end of the day, Mads is a child & deserves treatment & honestly I couldn’t care less who funds it as long as she gets the care she needs… Her life shouldn’t come down to money… If it was your child I'm sure you would feel the same."

Posting from Madison's public Facebook page - used to help fundraise for living costs and keep people up to date on Madison's progress - Ms Merrick wrote that she needed to take time out from social media.

"The last update I posted a while ago now, I got publicly attacked about Madison's immigration status & the medical treatment she receives. I know that the majority of the followers on this page simply just care about us but sometimes I don't want to update because I just don't have the energy to deal with the people who post hate."

Madison will return to New Zealand when her doctors deem her well enough to travel.

Newshub.