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Stars back Margot Martini's life-saving campaign

A new campaign inspired by the life of toddler Margot Martini to boost the number of stem cell and bone marrow donors worldwide launched today.

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A host of famous faces, including Adrian Chiles, Catherine Tate and England's most-capped rugby player Jason Leonard are backing the Team Margot Foundation.

Our very own sports broadcaster Adrian Chiles
Rugby star Ben Cohen
Legend Jason Leonard
Gemma Oaten from Emmerdale
ITV's Charlotte Hawkins

The charity was created in memory of Margot whose battle with a rare and aggressive form of leukaemia sparked a worldwide campaign to find more stem cell donors.

Margot, whose mother Vicki is from Essington, tragically lost her battle with blood cancer in 2014 and passed away aged just two years and two months old.

But her extraordinary legacy lives on and now a new International Stem Cell and Bone Marrow Awareness Day has been launched for October 7 every year –- the anniversary of Margot's diagnosis, to encourage a further 2.2million people to sign the UK stem cell register in her memory.

Mr Leonard, who is president of the Rugby Football Union, said: "I was shocked to hear that less than three per cent of us give blood, especially as we never know when we might need it ourselves. To hear about what Team Margot are doing to raise awareness around the lack of stem cell donors, carries a similar message and one I'm very proud to support."

Other celebrities backing the Team Margot campaign include rugby and Strictly star Ben Cohen, Emmerdale's Gemma Oaten, Sky Sports' Natalie Pinkham CNN Anchor Hala Gorani, ITV and Sky newsreaders Charlotte Hawkins and Sarah Hewson, Team England boxer Warren Baister and former rugby star Lewis Moody.

All of them have posed in photographs with pink Team Margot bracelets to promote the new stem cell and bone marrow awareness day.

Blood Cancer is one of the top 10 most common causes of cancer death in the UK and worldwide.And if the patient – like Margot – has a mixed ethnic background or is from a Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic,BAME, community – then the odds fall to just 21 per cent, as finding a suitable donor with a matching tissue type becomes even harder.

Team Margot is therefore encouraging people from ethnic backgrounds and especially those with a mixed heritage to join the register and will be campaigning for more people to sign up.

Today the charity is calling on the public to post a photograph & share on social media with the hashtag: #Register4Margot to raise awareness of the importance of stem cell and bone marrow donation.

Yaser Martini, Margot's father added: "To date, we are aware of at least 10 people who have not only joined the register because they were inspired by Margot and the efforts of Team Margot, but who have also gone on to actually donate their stem cells or bone marrow.

Details can be found on their website teammargot.com

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