A former professional athlete is petitioning the US Embassy to allow her to travel to San Francisco for vital cancer treatment. Sarah Wright (nee Gray), 33, was accepted onto a new drug trial during lockdown but is unable to leave the country due to travel bans in the UK and US.
Diagnosed in November 2018, Sarah found out about her breast cancer the same week she discovered she was pregnant with her first child. Receiving chemotherapy throughout her pregnancy, she delivered a healthy baby girl in July 2019 but was told only weeks later that her cancer was incurable.
Having exhausted all options in the UK, Sarah was accepted onto a US drugs trial where she was told the treatment has a ‘high chance’ of being effective to treat her tumour cells in a short amount of time.
‘We need to get passage to USA for the clinical trial, or obtain Leronlimab in the UK,’ said Sarah’s husband, Adam Wright, in a press release. ‘But given it is not approved yet the red tape of this makes it very unlikely. Going to San Francisco is the only chance Sarah has for more months or years to spend as a family and see our little girl grow up.'
‘She's always been so strong and independent, but she's not the mum she wants to be and it's heartbreaking,’ he continued. ‘Rounds and rounds of horrific chemo have left her too weak to even hold Everleigh now. Sarah is not getting better, and we don't know how long she has left.’
Ashford MP Damian Green has backed Sarah’s case, contacting the US Embassy to see if exceptions can be made for Sarah to travel. According to the couple’s press release, ‘Sarah will be allowed immediate access to drugs if we can get to USA’ and will only need to be in San Francisco for a few days before returning to the UK.
With Damian Green on their side and Sarah’s oncologist investigating how to expand access to the treatment in the UK, the couple are hoping increased awareness will encourage the US and UK governments to grant this life-saving exception. Asking for help from the public, the couple have started a social media campaign and asked people to tweet #savesarahgray to raise awareness.
To find out more and follow Sarah’s journey, click here.
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