A mother has been left 'heartbroken' after a scammer set up a fake online fundraiser for her 11-month-old daughter, who is battling a rare form of cancer. Katelyn Clarke, 23, from Plymouth, Devon, had launched a genuine appeal to help cover the costs of travelling to appointments at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London for her baby Macey-Mai.
Macey-Mai was born with giant congenital melanocytic nevus (GCMN), a benign tumour-like malformation that covers most of her body. In August 2025, doctors removed seven lesions from her largest birthmark, and tests later revealed that one of the lumps was malignant. Katelyn said the diagnosis was devastating, as malignancy is usually expected in adulthood, not infancy.
While Katelyn's genuine GoFundMe page was raising funds for travel and other expenses, a separate website appeared falsely claiming that the family had chosen private treatment after the NHS refused to remove Macey-Mai's birthmark. The scam page appeared to have raised £12,600, though it is unclear if any of the donations were genuine.
Katelyn said she was 'heartbroken' that someone would exploit her daughter's illness. 'Macey desperately needed those funds and for someone to be so sick as to make a fake page to make thousands off her story is horrible,' she said. 'These are funds that would've gone a massively long way in helping Macey-Mai, donations she'll never get back.'
The family has reported the fraud and is urging the public to only donate through the official GoFundMe page. Macey-Mai continues to undergo monitoring and treatment, with her mother checking her skin daily for changes that could indicate further malignancy.
