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Appeal for toddler in need of urgent bone marrow transplant reaches £10,000 target

An appeal to raise £10,000 to help a Shropshire toddler with a life-limiting disease find a bone marrow donor has smashed its target.

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Gunner Lewis-Vale, 19 months, with his mum Holly

In March, nineteen-month-old Gunner Lewis-Vale was diagnosed with a rare mucopolysaccharide disease, MPS Type 1 Hurler, which means his body cannot convert sugar into necessary protein in the body.

Although it was discovered at a relatively early stage, Gunner’s doctors have said his best chance of survival is with a stem cell transplant before his second birthday.

His family, from Highley, near Bridgnorth, have been raising urgent funds to add more donors to a stem cell register with hopes it will give him the best chance of survival.

It costs £40 to recruit each potential donor to the register.

An online fundraising page to help his cause has raised just over £10,000 in the space of a month.

It got over the line thanks to a generous donation of £250 on Friday.

'Overwhelmed'

Gunner's mum Holly, 31, says his family has been overwhelmed by the donations and support, while many fundraisers have also been organised within the local community.

"We've lived in the area our whole lives," Holly said.

"As we slowly came out of lockdown we didn't have the best news to share. Everyone has been so kind and thoughtful.

Gunner Lewis-Vale, 19 months, with his mum Holly

"You get so emotional because you can't explain how thankful and grateful you are."

She said the family are trying to remain positive, adding: "We also want to set up a charitable trust to help our family to adapt and cope as Gunner grows but also help other families in the same situation.

"We are now very aware that as Gunner grows and develops, it is very likely that he will require specialist equipment and that we will need to adapt our home to help make his life easier.

"We would like to start a legacy for him, which is where the charitable trust comes in.

"We will also be donating to the MPS charity to help fund research given that there currently isn’t a cure.

"This might not benefit our family now but could help other families in the future."

Andy Tamplin and Ben Vale will be sitting on every seat of Shrewsbury Town's Montgomery Waters Meadow Stadium later this year, raising money to help Gunner

Holly says they set a target to raise £10,000 but the fundraiser will continue to run, with anything extra raised going to the trust.

As Gunner does not have a close enough match in his family, he needs to find a matching, unrelated donor through the stem cell register.

His family had a glimmer of hope when a potential match was found recently, but for an unknown reason they did not respond.

"It just didn't work out and there could be many reasons behind that," said Holly.

"Although we were slightly disappointed, it was early stages. It's given us an inkling of hope."

The Gunner’s Goal fundraising appeal will help Anthony Nolan send thousands of swab packs to people who have applied to join the stem cell register.

Donor register

It is hoped it will increase the chances of people like Gunner finding his match.

More young men, aged 16-30, are also been urged to join the Anthony Nolan register, as they’re the most likely to be chosen to donate, but make up just 18 per cent of the overall register.

While weekly enzyme infusions at Birmingham Children’s Hospital keep Gunner stable, the only hope of prolonging his lifespan lies in a stem cell transplant, and his medical team need to find a matching donor before his second birthday.

The impact of the coronavirus pandemic on Anthony Nolan’s fundraising activity and a large number of people joining the charity’s register in early December means there are currently around 14,000 potential donors waiting for a swab kit.

The charity had been overwhelmed with support and needed to raise up to an extra £500,000 to add people to the register, from ordering more swab packs to analysing completed swabs in its laboratory.

Henny Braund, chief executive of Anthony Nolan, said: “A perfect storm of the coronavirus pandemic, and a surge of incredible people who have been inspired to join the Anthony Nolan register recently – by patients, like Gunner – means that we’re in urgent need.

"The best thing people can do is support Anthony Nolan’s work financially. By giving anything, together we can add all potential lifesavers to the register, and give patients like Gunner hope.”

Anyone interested in donating can visit gofundme.com/gunnersgoal.