Alison and Eliza's story

Alison is the mother of Eliza, age three:

"I first noticed a small bruise about 1cm round on my three-year old daughter, Eliza. It was just to the side of her left armpit and I remember thinking what a strange place to get a bruise.

“The bruise didn't go away, so I started looking into what else it may be and stumbled across SRUK's website where I found information about morphea.

“In early July we finally got to see the Dermatologist, she confirmed that Eliza did indeed have morphea. I left the surgery with an appointment for Dr. McCann in two weeks time. Finally!

“Our appointment at Alder Hey came and we were so relieved to be seen by someone who knew what they were looking at and specialised in that area. Eliza was examined and another patch found. They decided to treat it aggressively as the disease can be unpredictable in children, especially if crossing a joint, which Eliza's' were. She started on Methotrexate that evening and was given a date to return mid august to start her I.V steroids.

“The best news is that, so far, the patches have not increased in number or spread any bigger. The four patches she has have lightened in colour and are not quite as noticeable.

“I would like to say a big thank you to SRUK, as without the work they do I would not have had the knowledge I needed to pursue a diagnosis and get the treatment needed for our daughter."