A HAMPSHIRE woman will today open a bone marrow donor recruitment clinic after being inspired by the plight of four brothers fighting a rare disease.
Lizzie Williams followed the our heart-warming story of Josh, Nathan, Daniel, and Luke Hartley.
Today she and a team of helpers, will open the clinic in Holbury, near Hythe, and Lizzie's urging the local community to come along and join the donor register that can help save lives across the world.
The Hartley boys suffer from the rare genetic condition known as X-linked lymphoproliferative disease (XLP), or Duncan's disease, which means they won't live beyond their teens unless they have vital bone marrow transplants.
Twelve-year-old Josh was the first to undergo his transplant and is now recovering at home.
Next in line is Daniel, eight, whose transplant is set to take place at the end of October. Matches have also been found for 10-year-old Nathan and four-year-old Luke.
But there are many others whose lives are also dependent on receiving a bone marrow transplant.
That's the reason mum-of-two Lizzie, 44, of Southbourne Avenue, Holbury, has set up a clinic in the hope that more people will join the donor register.
"The story of the Hartley boys made me realise that although they have all now found donors, there are a lot of children out there who still need them," she said.
"I got in touch with the Anthony Nolan Trust about organising a clinic. They were very keen for me to do it."
Working for the Blood Transfusion Service, Lizzie was already equipped with some of the skills she needed to hold the clinic and enlisted the help of 12 friends who will take blood samples, make tea and coffee for guests and do the paperwork .
Debby Jepps from the Anthony Nolan Trust said: "Every year hundreds of patients are informed that their only chance of a full cure is to have a bone marrow transplant.
"The more people we add on to the register the more chance we have of finding the life-saving matches that these patients so desperately need."
The clinic, which is being held in association with the Anthony Nolan Trust, will take place at Manor Infant School in Teachers Way, off Line Kiln Lane, Holbury, from 4pm to 7pm.
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