Vale man with MS needs £50,000 for treatment in Mexico

James Monks, 29, was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis following a wakeboarding accident last year.

In the months since he has been in steady decline, prompting his friends to launch a fundraiser to pay for stem cell therapy.

Alistair Taylor, a friend of James’ since their schooldays at Prince Henry’s High School, has been delighted with the generosity shown thus far.

He said: “We’re practically joined by the hip so when he became unwell, I just had to do something.

“We launched the Go Fund Me page at about 4.30pm on Wednesday and in less than three days we’ve raised more than £27,000.

“It’s been overwhelming, especially to see some of the names donating. There are people we went to school with and people we haven’t seen in years donating.

“There’s been an awful lot of bad news recently so it’s so great to see people coming together and trying to help James.”

James was diagnosed with MS following a wakeboarding accident last year. Before his diagnosis, friends described him as "the picture of health"

Alistair is hoping to raise £50,000 which would pay for James to go to Mexico to receive stem cell therapy.

The procedure would see James’ immune system wiped out by chemotherapy and rebuilt via stem cell transplant.

James is currently in discussions with medical consultants and is hoping to fly over in July.

Alistair added: “Though there are no guarantees with MS, this therapy is James’ best chance at stopping the disease and giving James his life back.

“MS is a time-sensitive disease and given his quick deterioration, the lottery of waiting to see how bad his condition gets leaves us no option but to seek this treatment abroad.”

James Monks, with his partner Hazel Jenkins

Before diagnosis, James’ friends described him as “the picture of health” and he had been caring for his grandmother with dementia in Harvington.

He had also been helping his father, who has Parkinson's Disease, and his mother, who is battling breast cancer, all alongside his job.

Alistair believes this stress, coupled with a wakeboarding crash in August 2021, was the “perfect storm” to trigger the dormant MS in his system.

He added: “James is a person who has always been generous with his time and always been the first to help others in need.

“Now it is his time to be supported.”

To donate, visit James’ Go Fund Me page here.