A YOUNG eczema sufferer whose skin was so sore that she used to stay up scratching until she bled, has made a dramatic recovery after taking a chemo drug.
Honor Stanmore, from Witney, Oxfordshire, woke up every morning in blood-stained sheets.
The nine-year-old's dry, raw skin was so painful that she even struggled to eat and was left so exhausted that she couldn't go to school or go to her sports clubs.
But Hope's skin has been hugely improved after taking part in an NHS research trial at Oxford's Churchill Hospital.
There, she's been given methotrexate – a drug usually given to people with neck, lung and breast cancers.
Mum Laura Klee, 36, said: "She was so bad that she couldn't eat because she had eczema all around her mouth, so it was very painful to stretch her mouth open and foods like tomatoes would sting.
"That's when I thought, 'Right, this isn't good'. It wasn't just hobbies and schooling that was being affected, it was her basic levels of living that she wasn't able to do without any discomfort.
"She itched from the minute she woke up to the minute she went to sleep and became depressed."
Honor was diagnosed with eczema at just four-weeks-old and was using steroid creams until 2016, when her condition became more severe.
Laura, a home support worker for Age UK, said that the lack of sleep "had been the biggest killer".
"She had broken nights from when she was a baby right up until she was seven.
"The bedsheets used to be covered in blood in the morning from where she had been scratching all night.
"Some nights she'd be screaming and pleading for me to help her, so I'd end up giving her bath or taking her on a drive at 3am just to distract her from itching.
"She still gets anxiety and stomach aches at night time because she associates it with really long, horrible nights where she was awake for hours itching."
Desperate to find a cure for her daughter, Laura agreed for Honor to take part in the NHS trial which looked to compare two medications to see which was more effective for treating severe eczema in kids.
Honor took part in the study in April 2017 and was given methotrexate.
Despite the trial finishing last January, she's still using the drug and has seen huge improvements in her skin.
Laura is now encouraging others to consider taking part in health research after seeing how it improved her daughter's life quality.
Eczema is thought to be an autoimmune issue that's caused by an overactive immune system reacting to harmless substances.
Honor had been offered the drug prior to the trial but Laura said that she'd been hesitant to use it.
"I'd turned it down as the thought of something suppressing her immune stem worried me," she recalled.
"The fact that it was being offered as part of a trial meant that it was incredibly well monitored, so I felt happy that she was in very good hands."
Within just three months, Honor's eczema had started to clear up.
Laura said that the trial had completely transformed the pair's lives.
Honor is now able to get a good night's sleep and her school attendance is the "best it's ever been".
She's also able to return to her after-school clubs.
"You hear about eczema and know its not a particularly nice condition, but I had no idea that it could be life-changing. It can ruin people's lives and affect their family's lives," said Laura.
What is methotrexate?
Methotrexate is a chemo drug which can also be used to treat a number of autoimmune conditions.
It's often given to people living with various forms of arthritis.
It can also be given to kids with lupus, scleroderma and dermatomyositis.
Methotrexate is taken either as a tablet or given as an injection, especially if you have side effects with the tablets. It is also available as a liquid.
Side effects of the drug can include:
- feeling sick
- headaches
- vomiting
- diarrhoea
- shortness of breath
- mouth ulcers
- minor hair loss and hair thinning
- rashes
Source: Versus Arthritis
Honor added: "I feel a lot better now and I'm glad that I'm sleeping again.
"It's sore sometimes if I've been scratching but it's much better and I can live with it now."
In a bid to help other parents who have children living with the severe, chronic condition, Laura has now set up the "Living with Eczema – Support Forum and Blog" on Facebook.
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