Baffled doctors find rays of hope for Kade

By Paul Dunlop
DOCTORS admit they’re baffled by Pakenham boy Kade McKillopSimpson’s mystery illness, but they still believe he has every chance of a happy and healthy life.
Residents have flooded the Gazette with calls of support since news of his fight to overcome illness was reported a fortnight ago.
The brave youngster has spent much of his 16 months in the Royal Children’s Hospital because of a condition — dubbed “Kade syndrome” — that stops his gastric system emptying.
Kade’s stomach does not open properly to allow food to pass through, prompting agonising spasms and vomiting when it becomes full.
The brave young boy’s illness, reported in the Gazette, first emerged when he was just nine days old. It is believed to be a world first.
Consulting pediatrician Dr Lionel Lubitz said doctors had never encountered the condition.
“He’s got a very unusual problem, we don’t really know what it is,” Dr Lubitz said.
“The spasms give him pain and make it very hard for him to feed.
“We haven’t got a name for it, but we can deal with it a lot better now. He’s a beautiful young fellow, we are optimistic that he will come through.”
Dr Lubitz said Kade’s doctors hoped he would improve as he developed.
The Pakenham boy is one of the faces of this year’s Royal Children’s Hospital Appeal.
His anxious parents, already so proud of Kade’s courage in the face of his pain, are clinging to the hope a cure can be found.
Kade’s parents Glen and Tammey are taking their son into the hospital for more tests this week.
Glen said they were keeping fingers crossed that the doctor’s optimism would prove wellfounded.
“We wish we could be certain but all we can do is keep hoping,” they said.