Toddler's mum calls stem cell donors 'superheroes'

Oti went through treatment for his leukaemia after finding a donor through the global stem cell register

The mother of a toddler who received a stem cell transplant from an umbilical cord to treat his leukaemia, said people who donate were "real-life superheroes."

Oti from Saffron Walden in Essex, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia in 2022 but is cancer-free after stem cells, frozen for 12 years, were found to be a match and allowed treatment.

His mum Jo, said she would be forever grateful to the anonymous donor.

"It’s incredibly magic that there’s a woman out there who doesn’t know that she saved my son’s life," she said.

Oti, now nearly three years old, received six months of chemotherapy at Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge and went into remission before the cancer returned in July 2023.

He was able to go through treatment after finding a donor through the global stem cell register.

The procedure was fully funded on the NHS and involved stem cells from an umbilical cord from America.

They were injected into Oti, who was then cared for at Bristol Children's Hospital.

Jo said: "Because the umbilical cord registry works slightly differently, we'll never know who the donor was."

Oti's mum Jo says her son has been "thriving" since having treatment

Diane Davies, lead midwife and head of cord collection at charity Anthony Nolan, said umbilical cords were "rich" in stem cells.

"It can be used in the development of new treatments which extend beyond blood cancers and disorders.

"Cord blood is particularly vital for parents from minority ethnic backgrounds because they are less likely to have a matching stem cell donor on the register," she said.

'Real-life superheroes'

Since the transplant, Jo has worked with blood cancer charity DKMS to encourage people to sign up and register.

A spokeswoman for DKMS said anyone between 17 and 55 could apply for a mouth swab kit to join its stem cell register.

She said: "You have parents that are on their knees because they cannot save their children and these people do it for you. They're real-life superheroes."

Now cancer-free, it will take two years before he receives the official all-clear, but Jo said her son was "thriving".