A TAVISTOCK family has raised a large sum of money for a charity which supports people with the serious blood disorder Aplastic Anaemia, after mum Melissa was diagnosed with the condition late last year and is now in need of a stem cell transplant.

Mother-of-two Melissa Renshaw and her husband Simon, who own Dukes Coffee House in the town, organised a fundraising cake and book sale and a lucky dip with their two daughters Maisie and Molly at the coffee shop on Saturday as part of Aplastic Anaemia Awareness Day.

Aplastic Anaemia (AA) is a serious acquired blood disorder. The bone marrow fails to produce essential blood cells meaning people with the condition have to have regular blood and platelet transfusions. It is thought to be caused by an auto-immune reaction where the immune system attacks the bone marrow, causing marrow function to slow down.

Melissa was diagnosed in November and has had numerous blood transfusions and underwent ATG therapy — a drug which suppresses the faulty immune system administered over four days and the patient remains in isolation on hospital for up to two weeks. In this time the immune system should heal, recover and resume normal blood cell production. The treatment gives patients a good chance of long-term survival and a near normal quality of life. Unfortunately, ATG was not successful for Melissa and she is now on the waiting list for a stem cell transplant.

Melissa said: ‘I was diagnosed in November after many tests, including blood tests and a bone marrow biopsy. Without normal blood cell production I am susceptible to infections, tiredness and bruising, hence the transfusions for red blood cells and platelets. This is why I attend hospital three times a week to have the transfusions. Since being diagnosed, I have been ill with pneumonia and was admitted to hospital and in isolation for nine nights because my immune system was compromised.

‘The ATG is a definitive therapy. There is a 65 to 70 per cent chance that the immuno-suppressive treatment will work but patients can relapse and AA can return in the future. ATG has not been successful for me. The only true curative treatment for severe AA is a successful stem cell transplant. A search for a donor with the same tissue type as myself is currently taking place.

‘Tissue typing is not related to your blood group, so a donor can be a very good tissue match but be a different blood group. When someone with a blood disorder needs a life saving stem cell transplant, the Anthony Nolan Register is used to find a genetic match for that person. If there is not a donor match in the UK, a search of registries in Europe and America are sought. A search is currently taking place for me by the stem cell co-ordinator team at Derriford.’

The family held the event on Saturday to raise funds for the Aplastic Anaemia Trust and to raise awareness of the disorder and encourage people to sign up to the Anthony Nolan register and donate blood and platelets.

They managed to raise almost £2,000, with the help of match funding from Melissa’s employer HSBC, which Melissa and Simon were overwhelmed with and know it will be greatly received by the Aplastic Anaemia Trust for continued research and support.

Melissa expressed thanks to her husband, family and friends for their generous donations, the staff and customers at Dukes, Hugo the breadman, Tavy signs, MJ Baker, Sarah Renshaw and NHS nurses Angela Hill and Jo Young, who attended the event to give information.

Melissa said: ‘Since diagnosis my life has changed considerably. I am a mum of two girls, aged 10 and 11, so life was pretty hectic with school and clubs and their social lives. I also worked four days a week and was studying for an exam. I would love to walk our dog Monty on Whitchurch Down and I was really into my fitness training sessions.

‘We liked spending time as a family at the weekends and also loved socialising with our friends and spending time at the beach. Life now consists of hospital visits and time spent at home. Before I rarely stopped but now resting is really important for my well-being. I have to limit where I go as my immune system is compromised.

‘It could take two to three months to find a stem cell donor. In the meantime I will continue to have transfusions. It’s a long road ahead, however I am very optimistic and I‘m a fighter so I’ll do whatever I need to get through it!’

Nine out of ten people can donate their stem cells via the bloodstream in a straightforward process. For more information about becoming a stem cell donor, visit www.anthonynolan.org, www.nhsbt.nhs.uk/bonemarrow or www.dkms.org.uk/en

Melissa expressed thanks to all the haematology staff on the Birch Day Case Unit and the high dependency inpatient transplant unit Bracken at Derriford Hospital for their continued care and support.