A seven-year-old boy has begun a potentially life-saving bone marrow transplant after his father stepped in as a donor.
Rayann Siddiqui, who was the subject of appeals led by actress Meera Syal in the Evening Standard, was admitted to Great Ormond Street Hospital after no suitable donor of South Asian origin could be found. His father Ghazali, pictured with Rayann, has now donated his stem cells.
The family from Welling, Kent, were advised Mr Siddiqui’s cells stood a 50 per cent chance of being a match for Rayann, who developed a rare form of blood cancer known as hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis in May. A campaign with charity Delete Blood Cancer inspired 3,000 people to register as donors, but the chance of finding a suitable donor was 100,000 to one.
Mr Siddiqui said: “It is vital that this register grows to help others with blood cancer. Rayann is going to be in hospital for eight weeks and we pray for it all to be a success.”
