Cancer-stricken baby from Whitehorse awaiting liver transplant
Emmett Smith's mother says a piece of her own liver may help extend her son's life
The family of a four-and-a-half-month-old baby from Whitehorse being treated for a rare form of liver cancer is preparing for a liver transplant procedure in Edmonton.
I want to be able to help my baby, to extend his life.- Charlotte Francis
Emmett Smith, the infant son of Charlotte Francis and Michael Smith, has undergone four cycles of chemotherapy, with a fifth on the way, and was recently moved in March to Edmonton for further treatment.
Francis says doctors there are conducting tests to see if a piece of her own liver can be transplanted into Emmett, who weights about 11 pounds.
But before any procedure can happen, Emmett needs to gain more weight, she says.
"He's so small and all of his blood vessels and everything would be too hard to work with," says Francis.
"I want to be able to help my baby, to extend his life."
Despite what he's gone through, Emmett is a smiling, happy baby, says Francis.
People have donated more than $10,000 to help support the family using a page set up on popular crowdfunding site GoFundMe.com.