Mum of baby with rare disease in bone marrow plea

The mother of a baby boy diagnosed with a rare blood condition a week before his first birthday is urging people to join the Anthony Nolan stem cell register in the hopes of curing her son.

Ronnie, from Merseyside, had just started crawling when his mother Laura noticed he was bruising more.

The one-year-old was eventually diagnosed with aplastic anaemia, which is fatal if left untreated.

The family is working with the Anthony Nolan charity on their Register4Ronnie campaign.

The condition occurs when the bone marrow cannot make enough new blood cells for the body to work normally, with about 100 to 150 new cases in the UK every year.

Laura, 30, said: "He had only just started crawling, then three days later when I got him up, he had blood coming from his nose, blisters in his mouth, and red dots on his body."

Ronnie was rushed to Alder Hey Hospital in Liverpool where he was taken for blood and platelet transfusions.

"The room went quiet, our hearts were pounding, and then instantly our minds were jumping to the worst-case scenario and thinking 'how is my 11-month-old meant to battle such a deadly disease at such a young age'," Laura said.

"This is a day that will forever be engraved in our minds, every time we hear sirens now it takes us back to that night of being blue-lighted to Alder Hey."

Cancer was later ruled out, although doctors struggled to test Ronnie's sparse bone marrow.

The family was told his levels were at 5% with very few cells, when a baby his age should have 100%.

A second test revealed Ronnie had aplastic anaemia and his parents were told a bone marrow transplant was his only hope of a cure.

Aplastic anaemia can affect anyone at any age but is more common in people aged between 10 and 20, and those over 60.

Symptoms include tiredness, shortness of breath, headaches, bleeding from the nose or gums, and infections.

Laura said Ronnie was "happy and smiling" despite infusions and injections to stimulate his bone marrow production.

However, there is also a worry over complications as Ronnie has been diagnosed with neutropenia, which reduces white blood cells that are essential for fighting bacterial infections.

They hope to encourage more people to join the Anthony Nolan stem cell register to help children like Ronnie, as well as youngsters with other conditions such as leukaemia.

Laura said: "There are so many other kids out there who need a match, we are putting it out there for Ronnie."

She added the family was also aiming to raise awareness of aplastic anaemia, adding: "No-one's heard of it."

Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.