A FAMILY are celebrating the two-year anniversary of their daughter’s life-saving stem cell transplant by appealing for more donors so other children and adults can be given the same second chance.
Emilia Mackay was diagnosed with aplastic anaemia – a blood cell condition – in May 2023 and in the July a desperate plea was made for stem cell donors.
Fortunately, one was found and she was able to undergo the operation she needed at Birmingham Children’s Hospital later that year.
By December, in time for Christmas, Emilia was back home and she has since gone from strength-to-strength and is now living the illness-free life every child deserves.
Her recovery journey in 2023 prompted her family to emphasise the critical need for more people to register as stem cell donors with blood cancer charity DKMS to help others still waiting for their match.
This week, with Emilia and her family having celebrated their two-year milestone, they want to reiterate the message about the need for stem cell donors.
Life-saving appeal
In 2023, only three per cent of the UK population was registered as a stem cell donor and, despite numerous pleas and appeals for more, that figure has largely stayed the same.
But every 20 minutes someone in the UK is diagnosed with blood cancer.
The Mackay family have been working with DKMS, which holds the biggest UK register of stem cell donors, to encourage more people to sign up.
Emilia’s dad James Mackay said: “We went through a really tough time waiting to see if we could get a match for Emilia.
“We want make sure that happens to as few families as possible.
“People can check to see if they are eligible and, if they are not, they can always donate money to DKMS to help fund the testing process.”
People can visit dkms.org.uk/register to register for stem cell donation.
