- Stacey Mccormack was suffering from debilitating Crohn’s disease
- Condition occurs when the immune system attacks the body
- This causes the lining of the digestive system to become inflamed Â
- Can be controlled by medication that suppresses the immune system
- But means the body is less able to fight infections, such as chickenpox
- Mother-of-one fell ill and quickly fell into a coma, dying weeks later  Â
Anna Hodgekiss for MailOnline
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Stacey Mccormack suffered from Crohn’s disease, which required her to take medication that suppressed her immune system
A mother died from chickenpox after medication she was taking for an unrelated health problem left her body unable to fight the infection.
Stacey Mccormack was just 32 when she was struck down by the illness and rushed to hospital.
Her condition became so bad that doctors were forced to place her in an induced coma, and told her family she may not make it through the night.
The mother-of-one eventually passed away weeks after contracting the illness when her family made the heart-breaking decision to turn off her life support machine.
It is thought she was unable to fight off the simple infection as her immune system had been left so weak due to medication to control her Crohn’s disease.
The long-term condition that causes inflammation of the lining of the digestive system.
It’s thought to occur when the immune system mistakes bacteria normally found in healthy intestines for invading substances.Â
It then attacks this bacteria, causing inflammation which damages the surrounding tissue.
Symptoms include diarrhoea, abdominal pain, fatigue and weight loss and, in the long term, the inflammation can result in additional complications, such as narrowing of the colon. Â
There is no cure but there are medications which keep symptoms at bay by suppressing the immune system.
However the problem with suppressing the immune system is that is it is then compromised when trying to fight infections – such as chickenpox.
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Ms Mccormack, from Jarrow, Tyne and Wear, was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease four years ago after continually complaining of stomach problems.
But her family said she refused to let her condition rule her life.
Her mother, Karen Mccormack, 57, said: ‘Stacey had always suffered with pains in her stomach.
‘It wasnt until she was about 28 or 29 when she was finally diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease.
‘She just got on with life. She suffered terribly with it, but she always had a smile on her face.’
Ms Mccormack had worked as a carer with South Tyneside Council since she was 16.Â
Her partner Graham Muirhead, with whom she had a six-year-old son, Liam, added: ‘She was so helpful, she really would help anyone.Â
It is thought Ms Mccormack (left) was unable to fight off the chickenpox infection as her immune system had been left so weak due to the medication
Ms Mccormack, with her partner Graham Muirhead and their six-year-old son Liam, died just weeks after developing the infection. Her family had to make the agonising decision to turn off her life support machine
‘Whenever anyone was in trouble, it was Stacey they would go to for help or advice. She had such a caring nature.
‘But her immune system was affected by the Crohn’s disease and the medication she had to take to control it.’
It was in spring of this year that Ms Mccormack contracted  chicken pox.
She was initially admitted to South Tyneside District Hospital and when her condition worsened was put into an induced coma.
At the same time medical staff set about locating a free extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (EMCO) machine.
This was to support her heart and lung functions and it was hoped it would improve her prognosis.
Despite one being located in Leicester, her organs began to fail before it could be used.
On May 11, her family made the gut-wrenching decision to turn off her life support machine. Â
Ms Muirhead said: ‘Liam has been so brave. I took him to see his mam and he held her hand and kissed it, then started talking to her as though nothing was wrong. Even though he was only five at the time.Â
‘He has been so brave. We miss Stacey every single day but Liam really has been the one who has kept me going.’
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