OUR BOND IS UNBREAKABLE
Brother He’s my best pal. I’d do it all again tomorrow
Most siblings share a special relationship. But the bond between Aaron and Aiden Brown is unbreakable.
Aiden was born with Hurler disease, a rare condition that attacks the nervous system, and his family were told it was terminal.
But as his baby brother clung to life, Aaron was identified by doctors as the only hope to save him in what was then a groundbreaking medical procedure.
A bone marrow transplant, carried out 20 years ago, paved the way for surgeons to offer hope to future generations.
The pair were the youngest siblings in the country to undergo the procedure – and giving his brother a second chance at life is something Aaron is forever grateful he was able to do.
Although it’s not a cure, it has given Aiden, now 21, the chance to live a happy and full life, defying medics by becoming the oldest surviving Hurler disease patient in Scotland.
Aaron, 24, said: “He’s not just my brother, he’s my best pal. I’d do it all again tomorrow. We’ve always been close and I’d be lost without him.”
Two decades on, Aaron and Aiden still live at home in Livingston with mum Angela, 47, and remain as close as ever, sharing a love of football and music.
Hairdresser Angela said: “Without Aaron, we would have lost Aiden. We’ll always be grateful for what he has done and he will always be our hero.
“It was the most worrying time of our lives. I feared I’d lose them both.”
Angela f irst knew something was wrong with Aiden when he struggled with his development.
It took 10 months before doctors diagnosed Hurler disease and the family were left devastated after being told it was an incurable condition that could see him killed by an illness as simple as the common cold.
Doctors told Angela that her son’s only hope was a bone marrow transplant but stressed that the chances of finding a suitable donor in the time he had left were slim. She said: “We were heartbroken and knew his only hope was this transplant. Without it, we were told he would die.
“It was a race against time to find a donor match and we had to keep Aiden in total isolation as even a virus or flu could have killed him.
“The surgery had to be carried out before he reached 18 months or it wouldn’t work. After that point, his nervous system would have been damaged beyond repair and we would have lost him.
“It’s the worst illness a child could have because it affects every part of the body. We made the decision as a whole family to be tested and, on the very last test, Aaron proved to be a perfect match. He was just three years old and I thought, ‘How do I explain this to a child?’
“I felt it was really important to ask his permission. I told Aaron he had special blood that matched Aiden’s and he needed to borrow some to survive.
“It didn’t bother or daunt him in the slightest. He said he was just happy to help his wee brother.”
Medics told the family that the brothers would be the first Scottish siblings and the youngest in the UK to go through the complex procedure. They were taken to the Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital where consultant paediatric surgeon Dr Ed Wraith carried out the transplant.
Aiden, then 16 months old, went through weeks of painful chemotherapy to destroy his own bone marrow.
Angela said: “It was a massive operation 20 years ago and I was worried something would go wrong.
“Aiden was just a baby and was put into isolation until his blood count went to zero, then they took Aaron into theatre. They were able to extract a pint-and-