Thousands of stem cell donors sign up to help Liverpool baby

Francis has an aggressive form of cancer and needs a stem cell transplant

Thousands of people have signed up to become stem cell donors after an appeal to help a three-month-old baby with blood cancer.

Francis, from Liverpool, has acute myeloid leukaemia and is having chemotherapy at Alder Hey Hospital.

His parents said they felt "so desperate" in their search for a match for a stem cell transplant donor.

The Anthony Nolan charity said 2,248 people had joined the register since 16 August, but also urged more to sign up.

The charity said it had seen a 500% increase in donor sign ups in the past week, which it linked to an appeal from Francis' family which was also shared by Liverpool Football Club.

On Friday, Liverpool fans were shown the appeal at Anfield stadium during the club's game against Bournemouth.

The charity said that of the 2,248 who registered, 1,064 people were from the Liverpool area.

Liverpool fans shared an appeal to urge donors to come forward at Anfield stadium

Francis' mother, Anna, said her family's "worlds were turned upside down" when Francis was diagnosed with an aggressive form of blood cancer earlier in August.

The charity said his biopsy showed that his bone marrow was 80% cancer cells.

The disease, which is a cancer of the white blood cells, progresses quickly and aggressively and usually requires immediate treatment.

Francis has finished his first round of two chemotherapy treatments at Alder Hey Hospital and will be transferred to Manchester Children's Hospital in November, the charity said.

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Francis' parents, who live in Walton, were told that at the end of his treatment, he needed to have a stem cell transplant which is his only chance of a cure, the charity added.

Anna said: "Finding out that our baby has blood cancer has completely turned our world upside down.

"You never think something like this will happen to you, you feel so desperate," she said.

The family was "devastated" and pleaded with people to consider becoming a stem cell donor, she added.

The Anthony Nolan charity is particularly encouraging more young men to sign up to the register because they make up a high percentage of donations, but are less represented on the register.

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