The family of two year old Gaurav Bains is appealing for donors to step forward after being told that he needs a bone marrow transplant.
Gaurav from Birmingham was diagnosed with blood disorder Monosomy 7 in June and is likely to develop an aggressive form of childhood leukaemia. Doctors have told his family that his chances of survival will be increased if he has a bone marrow transplant before he develops leukaemia.
Sunny, Gaurav’s dad, says, ‘On the day we found out that our son would need a bone marrow transplant to prevent him from developing leukaemia, we just couldn’t believe it – we were completely knocked for six. It’s something you just never think will happen to your child.’
Gaurav’s parents, Sunny and Gurprit, and sister Kiran are currently being tested to see if they are a match for him. If none of them is a match, the family will turn to blood cancer charity Anthony Nolan to search for an unrelated donor.
Sunny says, ‘Hopefully one of the family will be a match for my son but if we’re not, we’ll be calling on a complete stranger to step forward and help him. We just hope that someone out there is a match for Gaurav. It would be amazing to find a matching donor for my son, but it’s not just about him. You could be a match for anyone out there in need of a bone marrow transplant so we’re trying to encourage everyone eligible to join Anthony Nolan’s bone marrow register.’
Sunny is particularly encouraging Asian donors to come forward as there is currently a shortage of bone marrow donors from Asian backgrounds on Anthony Nolan’s register.
Sunny says, ‘When we read that there was only around a 40% chance of finding a matching donor if you’re Asian, it really struck us. So many people don’t know how simple bone marrow donation is and how much it affects the Asian community. Without Asian donors, we might not be able to find a match for my son and for so many other people out there with blood disorders.’
Bhaveshree Chandegra, Anthony Nolan’s Asian Campaign Recruitment Manager, says, ‘Gaurav’s story shows just how important it is that more people sign up as bone marrow donors. Many people don’t realise how easy it is to join the bone marrow register and how simple it is to donate – in most cases, the procedure is similar to giving blood. We urgently need more people from Asian backgrounds to become bone marrow donors as they are under-represented on the register which makes it more difficult to find matching donors for Asian patients with blood cancer.’
For more information, please contact Amy Evans on 020 7424 6645 or email amy.evans@anthonynolan.org