HBL holds fundraiser to show support for teenager Grace Romeo as she deals with rare autoimmune disorder

As a young aspiring netballer deals with a rare autoimmune disorder that leads to difficulties with walking, a South West netball club has shown overwhelming support for one of their own to raise awareness and help fund research into the condition. Grace Romeo, 17, spent the 2022 netball season playing for Harvey-Brunswick-Leschenault in the South West Netball Football League and Leschenault Netball Association competitions dealing with what she thought was knee soreness stemming from an injury on the court. Towards the end of the year, Grace’s knee would buckle on occasion while she would be walking, causing her to fall and prompting regular physiotherapy appointments. Out of concern Grace was dealing with more than just a knee injury, she was taken to Bunbury Regional Hospital and after numerous x-rays, CT and MRI scans, she was referred to a neurologist at Fiona Stanley Hospital. After further testing, Grace was diagnosed with severe chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP), which eventually led to her using crutches to get around or a wheelchair to travel long distances. CIDP is a rare autoimmune disorder that affects the nervous system and peripheral nerves, causing messages from the brain to the nerves to be delayed or not received at all, resulting in weakness or loss of feeling in body parts. This in turn leads to difficulty with walking, standing, balancing, and in some cases, upper body movement. While there is no cure for CIDP, the condition is treatable with varying results. Despite facing plenty of adversity surrounding her mobility and being unable to play netball, Grace has stayed positive and is attending regular physiotherapy and occupational therapy sessions, IVIG infusions at the Bunbury Regional Hospital every three weeks and takes part in an ongoing at-home rehab program. “The past four months have been a real struggle, I was confined to a wheelchair for the last four months around the house and outside but I got new treatment from my neurologist and it’s helped a lot,” Grace said. “I’m back to walking around with my crutches and hardly using the wheelchair recently.” To raise awareness for the condition and show support for one of their own, the Harvey-Brunswick-Leschenault netball club held a fundraiser for Grace and her family, selling raffle tickets, accepting donations and selling handmade bracelets during their SWNFL matches against Eaton. Grace said she was overwhelmed by the level of support shown by the club as she continues to build towards her dream of being back on the netball court some day. “I’ve been with this club for many years so it’s nice to know that they want to help spread awareness,” she said. While Grace said she misses playing netball, she continues to attend games to support her younger sister Abby, who plays for HBL in the 16 & under competition. “I love watching and supporting Abby,” she said. “It’s hard not to play but it’s still good to be able to come down and watch whenever I can. “Being able to play netball and being able to drive is the ultimate goal for me.” Grace’s father Jason said the fundraiser held by HBL and seeing the level of support shown by the club had been amazing. “We had never heard of it (CIDP) and it’s a very rare disease, especially for females,” he said. “The journey Grace has been on physically and mentally has been a tough one so having days like this to raise awareness is amazing. “Hopefully going through different stages we’ll see improvements going forward.”