June 29, 2018 10.37 am This story is over 69 months old

Grimsby girl invites P!nk to 18th birthday she thought she’d never see

“Raise your glass” for this inspirational girl
Caitlyn McChord, a patient at St Andrew's Hospice, has her 18th birthday in August and her mum is looking for a pop star to mark the special occasion.

A teenage patient at a hospice in Grimsby is hoping to party with P!nk, as she looks forward to the 18th birthday that experts told her she would never see.

Caitlyn McChord, a patient at St Andrew’s Hospice, has her 18th birthday in August and her mum is looking for a pop star to mark the special occasion.

“My daughter suffers from mitochondrial disease and has already outlived her life expectancy,” explained Michelle McChord, “we had previously been told that she would not make it past 13 years of age.”

Music is something that Caitlyn enjoys the most in life, and she lists P!nk, Justin Timberlake and Little Mix amongst some of her favourite artists.

Michelle added: “When her favourite artists come onto the television, Caitlyn really becomes expressive and she always has a huge smile on her face.

“We had previously wanted to take Caitlyn to a concert but she is hypersensitive to other noises around her and touch too, so being in a big crowd wouldn’t be good for her.

“P!nk is her absolute favourite and she always smiles when her music is played.”

Caitlyn’s disease means that the mitochondria, which are responsible for creating more the majority of the energy needed by the body, are failing to function properly.

When mitochondria fail, less and less energy is generated and organs begin to fail.

To help support Caitlyn on social media, you can use the hashtag #getpinktotheparty.