Ed Sheeran has lent his support to a fan with an incurable disease called Rett Syndrome. The “Shape of You” singer donated a guitar to raise funds for 11-year-old Melody Driscoll, whose illness has left her in chronic pain.
The girl’s family are currently embroiled in a legal battle for her right to pain medication, which hospital staff said could damage her liver. Ed met Melody when he agreed to spend time with her in the hospital two years ago. Since then, the legal trouble around her medication has increased strain on her family.
Melody’s parents say access to pain medication will help improve their daughter’s quality of life. “I’d rather Melody had one more year filled with happiness than five years of pain,” Melody’s mother Karina Driscoll said. “It’s only now we realize how few rights we have as parents but we won’t give up.”
Rett Syndrome affects a victim’s ability to speak, walk, eat and breathe easily, and is marked by “near constant repetitive hand movements while awake.” The Driscolls will raffle off Sheeran’s guitar to help offset their expenses.