Who is Azaylia Diamond? Ashley Cain raises $2M for 7-month-old daughter's leukemia treatment in 20 hours
'Ex on the Beach' star Ashley Cain managed to raise almost $2 million in 20 hours after he appealed to fans and celebrity friends to help pay for his daughter's potentially life-saving treatment in Singapore. The fundraiser received $1,979,599 (£1,436,190) from over 103.8K donors when this article was published. Just 16 hours after posting his plea, the GoFundMe page reportedly hit its £1 million (approximately $1.37M) target after 73,000 people donated.
On Thursday, Cain took to Instagram to share a gallery of his seven-and-a-half-month-old daughter's photos. The reality star revealed about his daughter Azaylia Diamond Cain's leukemia relapse this week. In a desperate attempt to save the life of his daughter, Cain launched a GoFundMe page to secure funding and managed to surpass the goal within hours as donations and prayers flooded in.
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When pleading to fans, Cain said the trip to Singapore for a year-long CAR-T therapy, plus a haplo transplant (a half-matched stem cell transplant from a family member), is his daughter's best chance. "After long discussions and a global outreach for treatment, our consultants along with consultants from around the world have come to the conclusion that the ONLY option to save a minimum period of 1 year," he wrote on the GoFundMe page.
Bringing attention to the fact that his family is running short on money, he wrote, "Because of the aggressiveness of Azaylia’s disease, we don’t have time on our side and we may have to fly out within a matter of weeks. This treatment and associated expenses will be in excess of 1 million pounds with an initial deposit of £500,000 just to be accepted into the hospital and onto the program."
Who is Azaylia Diamond?
Cain's heartfelt GoFundMe plea is also an ode to his daughter. "Azaylia is such a strong little girl who has fought through every near impossible battle so far and she has done it all with love in her heart and a smile on her face! We pray that we can raise the funds to get her to Singapore so she can continue fighting for the life that she loves so much!" he wrote.
"Azaylia has changed our lives, she has made our lives and she deserves the chance to live her own life. She is beautiful, she is strong, she is courageous and she glows with hope and happiness. Our hearts are intertwined and with one beat of her heart, our hearts beat along together. Please help our hearts continue to beat as one!"
The parents were not hesitant to be vulnerable in front of the entire world. "We are on our knees asking for help to get us to Singapore. Even the smallest of donations can help us reach our goal! Please help us to save our beautiful daughter Azaylia, she has inspired not only us as her parents but so many other people around the world. If you have been following our journey you can see that she shows us all every day how much she loves life and wants to be here!"
