By Six-year-old Zakk from Winterton has been reunited with his mum and sisters after months in Sheffield Children’s Hospital.
Zakk battled leukaemia for 18 months, but after his chemotherapy treatment stopped being effective, his parents were forced to appeal for a stem cell donor.
It took months of searching to find a matching donor for Zakk, odds that his parents compared to “one in a million”.
Zakk’s mum, Elizabeth said she is ‘Very very chuffed to say that my baby and husband are home! I am very thankful to the Lord and am very blessed! We are overjoyed! Big mountain still to climb but we keep faith and trust and know we will overcome.’
Early January Zakk received the healthy stem cells he longed.
‘Zakk was diagnosed now just over 2 years ago and we thank the Lord for his continued healing. He has had a very rough time of things, the illness is horrendous as is the treatment needed, however the Lord gives him strength and we all wrap him with love and prayer.
‘Towards the end of last year he unfortunately relapsed, no longer responding to treatment meaning that a bone marrow transplant was needed to save his life.
‘We were fortunate to find a donor via a stem cell transplant, not everyone is able to find a match, being a donor literally saves lives and we praise the Lord for his match and am deeply grateful as Zakk is still here as a result!
The family are urging people to support Sheffield Children’s Hospital facilities
Elizabeth went on to say ‘People can register to be a donor via the Anthony Nolan Trust or DKMS. He had his transplant early January and due to his very fragile state only Craig remained in hospital with him, myself and the rest of his family didn’t visit which was very upsetting for us all but needed.
‘The staff on the ward were fantastic with Zakk and care for many very unwell children. More and more children are diagnosed with cancer and admitted to the ward, many for long periods, making the ward be like a second home, it has for us over the years.
‘His ward is in need of help, the nurses do their best but they are looking to improve their facilities, but they are fundraising to a rebuild/refurbishment to make it more fit for purpose and nicer for the children and parents that stay there.
‘And hopefully in time, as things become safer, enable a nicer environment for siblings also to visit. Cancer is an illness that affects the whole family, and being separated is very hard on everyone.
‘Zakk still has a long way to go and a mountain to climb but we have faith and trust in the Lord, he will make it. And we are all overjoyed to have him home! He still attends hospital a lot, and will continue to do so for quite some time.
‘A lot of children and their families will greatly benefit from the ward being refurbished, and there is a website with more information.
‘If people wanted to donate to support this fundraiser they just need to go to this website, and when donating click on the Cancer and Leukaemia ward option to donate to them specifically: https://www.tchc.org.uk/appeal/cancer-ward/
To register as a bone marrow donor and become a life saver!
https://www.dkms.org.uk/ https://www.anthonynolan.org/
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