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There’s nothing more five-year old Oscar Saxelby-Lee likes more than running around, getting muddy and playing football outdoors. But Oscar has spent a significant amount of time indoors at hospital because he needs a lifesaving stem cell transplant. 

Oscar, who recently celebrated his fifth birthday, was diagnosed with T- cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia in December 2018. He is currently being treated at Birmingham Children’s Hospital with regular blood transfusions. 

A mother from Fort William is calling for more people to sign up as potential stem cell donors, after her daughter was diagnosed with an extremely rare cancer and told she urgently needs a stem cell transplant. 

Chloe Purvis, who is just nine years old, was diagnosed with MDS (myelodysplastic syndrome), a rare type of blood cancer, at the end of last year. The average age for someone to be diagnosed with MDS is 75 years old, so it’s extremely unusual for a child to receive this diagnosis.

Actor Olivia Colman, Patron of blood cancer charity Anthony Nolan, has revealed the story behind her support for the organisation. 

In a new film released on World Cancer Day (4th February) Olivia shares her ‘Anthony Nolan Story’ which began after the charity found a stem cell donor for one of her close friends, named Pip.

In the film Olivia reveals:

Anthony Nolan’s chief executive, Henny Braund, has made the following statement in response to the news of Kaiya Patel’s death:

‘We are all deeply saddened to hear the news that Kaiya, whose family set up the ‘Cure Kaiya’ campaign, passed away on Sunday. Her death at such a young age is simply a tragedy.

‘Kaiya’s inspiring family and their incredible work signing up thousands of potential stem cell donors from diverse backgrounds, has created a lifesaving legacy in Kaiya’s name, that will continue to give people a second chance of life for many years to come.

Just over two weeks ago 10-year-old Rupert Cross, who received a stem cell transplant to treat his rare blood disorder, met the stranger who helped save his life.

Billy Higgins, from Essex, joined the Anthony Nolan register when he spotted a woman he liked in the queue. He was found to be a match for Rupert and donated stem cells collected via the bone marrow, while under general anaesthetic.

We're delighted to announce the winners of our annual Anthony Nolan Supporters Awards, following the awards ceremony at the Tower of London on Thursday 22 November.

The event has been taking place for the past four years, and has seen hundreds of awards presented to deserving fundraisers, families of patients, donors, clinical supporters and journalists, all of whom have supported Anthony Nolan in a number of ways.

Award nominees are decided by a mixture of recommendations from within the organisation and public nominations.

Education about stem cell donation, used to treat patients with blood cancers and blood disorders, could encourage up to 55,000 young people a year join the UK stem cell register, the charity Anthony Nolan has revealed today.

A new subject called Health Education will be compulsory in all state-funded schools in England from September 2020 and Anthony Nolan is urging the Department for Education to add stem cell donation to statutory guidance which already covers blood and organ donation for secondary school pupils.

Anthony Nolan is delighted to announce the shortlist for the 2018 Anthony Nolan Supporter Awards (ANSAs).

Finalists in 16 categories will be recognised in Anthony Nolan’s annual event, celebrating supporters, which takes place next month (Thursday 22 November) at the Tower of London.

Henny Braund, Chief Executive of Anthony Nolan, says: ‘Congratulations to everyone who has being shortlisted in the 2018 Anthony Nolan Supporter Awards.

A father from County Down is calling for more people to sign up as potential stem cell donors, after his son was told he urgently needs a stem cell transplant to treat his cancer.

Thomas Cafolla, 22, was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma in October 2017. He had just begun a placement year in London, as part of his hospitality course at Ulster University, when he started feeling unwell. 

Thomas’ father Michael said: ‘He was having night sweats and feeling particularly tired, but initially we put it down to a change in environment and the stress of working in a busy hotel.

‘I never want to see another family go through this, it’s heart breaking’.

A mother from Essex is calling for more people to sign up as potential stem cell donors, after she was told her young son urgently needs a transplant to treat his rare cancer.