‘Our Mother’s Days will be extra special’
THESE mums are celebrating the best Mother’s Day present they could ever have – their children are thriving after overcoming life-threatening illnesses.
Laura and Jason Branthwaite’s son Freddie was only 15 months old when he was diagnosed with severe aplastic anaemia, a rare condition which stops the body producing new blood cells.
He was diagnosed after he became pale and lethargic and his parents were told his only chance of survival was a stem cell transplant.
This involved taking cells from a healthy donor with the same tissue type and putting them into Freddie, to replace and repair their damaged cells.
Now the family are celebrating a major milestone – two years after the Anthony Nolan charity found him a stem cell match from their register and he had his transplant, Freddie is doing well. Laura, from Bolton, said: “Mother’s Day is just being absolutely thankful that our children that are still with us.
“When you have gone through things that at the time felt like the worst thing in the world, when you look back two years later, you value the time a lot more.”
Meanwhile, Denton mum Sarah Wilson will spend this Mother’s Day in Florida as a special treat for her son Noah, who, aged just five, has already overcome more than many experience in a lifetime.
Two years ago Noah was diagnosed with Crohn’s disease and a genetic condition called chronic granulomatous disease.
Sarah and Noah’s father Chris were told that without a stem cell transplant, Noah might not live beyond the age of 30.
Luckily, there was one perfect match for Noah on the worldwide donor register, a 19-yearold woman from Germany.
The stem cells were flown over by an Anthony Nolan volunteer courier and brought to Manchester Children’s Hospital for Noah’s transplant.
Incredibly, the youngster is now doing extremely well.
Sarah said: “The transplant changed our lives.
“I know it’s made Noah better and cured his condition, but it’s also made him so much more confident.
“We look at everything differently now.”