A young girl from Lowestoft has seen a substantial improvement to her health after her mother signed up for a global research project looking at the effect of baby feeding formulae.
Megan Bowman’s daughter Daisy became unwell when she was two months old and was referred to the allergy clinic at James Paget Hospital in Gorleston.
Her family was then offered the opportunity to take part in a global research project, which sees babies given either a standard or trial formula with the aim of improving their health.
Mrs Bowman said: “Daisy was crying constantly, being sick and had a rash over much of her body.
“During one of our visits, Dr John Chapman mentioned there was a study that we might like to get involved in.
“Anything was worth a try and, if it meant helping others too, we thought it would be worth it so we agreed to start as soon as possible.”
Daisy was subsequently assessed and found to meet the criteria for the study.
She had been losing weight due to her illness but, once the process began, she immediately started to put it back on.
Claire Whitehouse, lead nurse for research, who has been working closely with Daisy, said: “Daisy’s family have been fantastic throughout the process and agreed to take part not only to see if it could help her, but so that it might help other families in the future.”
“Choosing to become part of a project can be a big decision but Daisy is a good example of why we do research – to find individual solutions to suit each individual.”
Daisy now visits the hospital for monthly checks as part of the year-long study.
Mrs Bowman added: “She has stopped crying and is happy and interested in things again,”
“The treatment she has received from Claire and the team has been outstanding. They’ve become like another family.”
James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (JPUH) has seen a significant increase in clinical studies across a large number of disease areas in the last year.
For more information about research activity in your local trust, visit www.nihr.ac.uk/nihrleaguetable
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