Ronnie's Fight: Save Lives with Stem Cell Donation

0:00On March 31st, one-year-old Ronnie, from Merseyside, got hit with a plastic anemia right before his first birthday. This rare blood disorder means his bone marrow isn't pumping out enough new blood cells, and without a stem cell transplant, it's fatal. His family kicked off the Register 4 Ronnie campaign, with Anthony Nolan, to boost the stem cell register and find matches. Laura, his 30-year-old mom, spotted bruises when he first started crawling, then a nose bleed and mouth blisters hit three days later. Docs rushed him to alter Hey Children's Hospital, first thinking leukemia, but test showed his bone marrow at just 5% should be 100% for a baby his age. The family felt their world shatter that night, hearts pounding as sirens blared. Now they're channeling that pain into action, sharing Ronnie's story to rally support. He's still flashing happy smiles through infusions and shots to kickstart his marrow, but low white cells leave him wide open to infections. A plastic anemia strikes about 100 to 150 folks yearly in the UK, hitting teens and over 60's hardest, with signs like fatigue, bleeds, and shortness of breath.

1:09The campaign targets 16 to 30-year-olds, register free online, swab your cheek, mail it back, and you could save a life. Mercy side sticks together on this, and whether it's Ronnie or another kid like him with leukemia, every swab counts. Anthony Nolan's pushing hard, sign up today, and turn heartbreak into hope for families fighting the unknown.