An 11-year-old boy with a rare blood disorder has met the stem cell donor who saved his life when he was six. Allan McPike, 41, from Glasgow, was persuaded to sign the Anthony Nolan stem cell register by his late cousin, but did not hear anything more for 10 years.His donation has since transformed the life of Ryan Brand, from Caerphilly in Wales, who was diagnosed with diamond-blackfan anaemia (DBA) when he was eight-months-old.The rare genetic blood disorder stops the body from producing red cells.
It can lead to delayed growth and put people at a higher risk of developing certain diseases, such as cancer of the blood and bone marrow.Ryan’s mother Sam Brand, 34, told the PA news agency that hearing the diagnosis was “absolutely horrific”.
She said: “I’d been taking him back and forth to the doctors for ages, as he had a cough and cold.“We had his christening and everyone commented on how pale and poorly he looked.
I thought, I’m a first-time mum and I should listen to the doctor's advice.” Join the Daily Record's WhatsApp community here and get the latest news sent straight to your messages. Ryan required monthly blood transfusions, which Mrs Brand said was “really intense”. “It was emotional for him and emotional for us,” she added. “They told us if he didn’t have a transplant he would die.”Ryan eventually received bone marrow from Mr McPike in June 2017, and Mrs Brand said going in for the procedure was “a bit scary”.
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