Thousands in U.K. Line Up to Donate Stem Cells to Boy With Cancer
Britain breaks a humanitarian record! 5,000 people chose to be volunteers to donate their stem cells for a 5 year old boy with cancer. His school started a crowdfunding page to seek help for him as recently as February 2019.
Doctors diagnosed the 5 year old patient, Oscar Saxelby-Lee in December with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Indeed, this disease is a rare and aggressive cancer that causes the bone marrow to release immature white blood cells. The medical team gave him intense chemotherapy treatment for four weeks, then they decided to try a stem cell transplant within three months.
After doctors indicated the need for a stem cell transplant, Oscar’s school and his parents organized a donor event through DKMS, an international nonprofit organization focused on recruiting volunteers for blood cancer patients. Anyone aged 17 to 55 was eligible to participate.
Consequently, 4,855 people registered at Pitmaston Primary School during the weekend according to DKMS, surpassing the organization’s event record in Britain. Besides, this result increases the probability for Oscar and other patients waiting for stem cell transplants.
Furthermore, the school started a crowdfunding page in February with the parents of Oscar: Olivia Saxelby and Jamie Lee. The fund-raiser has already exceeded its original 5,000-pound target, gathering about $11,300, so far.