Dudley family’s delight after stem cell donor match found for Phoebe
A Dudley family have been left “over the moon” after being given the news that a stem cell donor has been found their young daughter who has leukaemia.
Phoebe Ashfield was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia when she was just seven-and-a-half months old in January last year.
The youngster, who lives in Gornal, relapsed in June and September last year, before undergoing CAR-T cell therapy at Great Ormond Street Hospital, which proved successful for a few months.
But in January this year, the family received news that it was not successful – and the only chance they had was a bone marrow transplant. Phoebe’s parents, Emma Wyke and Jordan Ashfield, both 27, are not full matches.
Various events have been held in a bid to find a match – including one at Brierley Hill Market Hall in February, organised by Michelle O’Sell and Karen Westwood, who are behind the Musings of a Black Country Wench, where more than 100 selfless strangers turn out to be swabbed.
An appeal posted online online by Emma in June last year appealing for a donor has also been shared more than 2,000 times.
And, earlier this month, the family received the news they had been waiting for that a match had been found for Phoebe, who is now 21-months-old.
The umbilical cord has come from a female baby born in the UK.
Phoebe has been undergoing chemotherapy treatment this week, and will receive her transplant on Tuesday.
Emma said: “We had a phone call from Birmingham Children’s Hospital saying they had found an umbilical cord which was a 10/10 match for Phoebe. They did all the tests they needed to do and matched it up with her.
“We are in transplant now, she is having a week’s worth of chemotherapy and on Tuesday she will have the stem cell transplant.
“We are over the moon. They have done it really quickly because of how aggressive it was, they said they could not wait any longer.
“It was a mix of emotions when I received the phone call. Obviously we were really happy, but it is scary too.
“We are delighted this was our chance, so we are very happy. We have been overwhelmed.
“She’s got every chance of this being her cure now.
“Phoebe’s doing fine at the moment, she’s just being your normal toddler!”
Emma added: “We are so grateful to people who came out to be swabbed for Phoebe. They may have saved someone else’s life.
“They have still done their good deed saving someone’s life.”
Last weekend, 13-year-old Ethan McDonald took on a sponsored swim in aid of Phoebe – after learning he was too young to be swabbed to see if he was a bone marrow transplant match. He raised more than £800.
For more information about becoming a donor, visit anthonynolan.org or dkms.org.uk/en/register-now.
