A$1.4 million boost to child health care

Seven year old Elly-May Bowen was diagnosed with a rare lung condition four years ago and visits the hospital for treatment several times a year.

Doctors have also suspected that Elly-May has a metabolic disorder that means part of her body's chemistry dose not work properly, but have been unable to identify a specific disorder.

Now, thanks to a generous gift of A$1.4 million to the Mater Children's Hospital, from an anonymous donor, Mater is hoping to give Elly-May, and other kids like her, a definite diagnosis.

The donation will fund the purchase of a A$600 000 time-of-flight mass spectrometer which will facilitate early and accurate diagnosis of specific metabolic disorders. The machine is the first of its kind in an Australian hospital.

According to Professor Frank Bowling, Director of Biochemical Disease at Mater Children's Hospital, one in 2000 Queensland children are born with metabolic disorders.

“Metabolic disorders can be very serious conditions, leading in some cases to brain damage, physical disablement and organ failure, and are also thought to be associated with other conditions including SIDS, epilepsy and migraine,” says Professor Bowling.

“There are at least 3000 types of metabolic disorders, and the spectrometer will allow us to pinpoint the exact molecules in the body where there is a problem.”

“This means we'll be able to offer patients new treatments and we'll be able to explain why they're sick,” says Professor Bowling.

Children in Mater Children's Hospital Intensive Care Unit and babies and children with eye disorders will also benefit from a range of other equipment funded by the donation.

Mr Nigel Harris, Executive Director of Mater Foundation, said the hospital is enormously grateful to the anonymous benefactor for investing so generously in the health of Queensland's children.