“DADDY, can we play football?”
Those are the most beautiful words in the world to Mo Hussain, 38, from Blackburn, because they mean his five-year-old son Eesa is having a good day.
2
And to ensure more good days lie ahead, this devoted father is a man on a mission, seeking the stem cell match that will save his little boy’s life.
“On New Year’s Day, Eesa felt sick and looked really pale,” Mo says. “Concerned, we took him to A&E.”
It’s every parent’s worst nightmare. A few hours later their son was being transferred by ambulance to Royal Manchester Children’s Hospital.
Normal levels of haemoglobin – a protein which transports oxygen around the body – are 120-150g/l. Eesa’s was 42g/l due to dangerously low red blood cell levels.
“I want to go home and play with my dinosaurs,” Eesa cried. Mo’s heart broke.
Mo cuddled Eesa as he had a general anaesthetic for a bone marrow biopsy.
That night, the whole family – Mo, his wife and two-year-old son Ali – crammed into Eesa’s cubicle on ward 86 to sleep. “We needed to be together,” Mo says.
The biopsy showed Eesa had a rare, life-threatening condition called aplastic anaemia, meaning his bone marrow and stem cells don’t produce enough red and white blood cells and platelets.
The best cure is a bone marrow transplant from a matching donor.
While preparations were made to test the family’s suitability, Eesa had a Hickman line fitted in his chest so doctors could administer medicines and take blood.
“To make it less frightening, I bought some plastic tubing and stuck it to my chest too,” says Mo.
Back home after a week in hospital, the family were on lockdown – Eesa off school and Mo and his wife on leave from work.
“We can’t risk Eesa catching something his body’s weak immune system can’t fight,” Mo says.
Devastatingly, no one in Eesa’s family is a donor match for him.
But there is hope. Fifty years ago, Shirley Nolan was so determined to save her son Anthony’s life that she set up the world’s first stem cell register.
Since 1974, the charity Anthony Nolan has helped bring about more than 26,500 transplants for people around the world.
If you’re from a minority ethnic background, you’re more likely to have a rare or completely unique tissue type.
That’s why there’s a pressing need to recruit more people from diverse backgrounds to the register to help patients like Eesa find the lifesaving matches they need.
“I had to educate our community,” Mo says. “The team at Anthony Nolan sent me swabs for people to wipe inside their mouths and envelopes to post them back.
“And, in February, we set up our first registration stall at a football tournament.”
Since then, Mo and his family and friends have visited mosques, universities and football stadiums including the Etihad, Turf Moor and Ewood Park – 40 locations in all, adding 1,200 potential new donors to the register.
Sadly, Eesa is still waiting for his match and remains dependant on blood transfusions every three weeks.
“I find patience in the words of the Quran – saving one life is like saving the whole of humanity,” says Mo.
“Anthony Nolan shares its register across the world so the people we sign up could save lives in Bangladesh, Pakistan – anywhere.”
For now, Eesa has good days – watching Arsenal and racing his police cars – and bad. In April, he was hospitalised because his Hickman line became infected.
“He’s the bravest five-year-old in Britain,” Mo says. “But we just want a normal childhood for him.
“The greatest Father’s Day gift I could receive is a match for Eesa. So I’m appealing to other dads – log on to anthonynolan.org today.
“You could save someone like my son’s life.”
Follow the My Name is Eesa campaign on Instagram at @mynameiseesa
Match of the day
Joining the stem cell register is easy. You must be aged between 16 and 30, as research shows younger donors offer better survival rates for patients.
Fill in a form at anthonynolan.org to receive a swab pack – then take a sample and send it back.
Ken (above), 26, from Tower Hamlets, signed up to the register eight years ago at an Anthony Nolan stand handing out Krispy Kreme doughnuts.
And three years later he discovered he was a match for someone.
“I was given G-CSF injections at home for four days,” he says. G-CSF injections boost white cells and release stem cells into the bloodstream ready to collect.
“They gave me minor headaches and muscle pain – nothing more. On the fifth day I was in hospital, donating my stem cells and afterwards I was fine.
“I hope that more people will join the stem cell register and help Anthony Nolan save the lives of people with blood cancer and blood disorders.
“If a family member or friend was diagnosed with blood cancer, it would make such a difference to know that they have a match and a second chance at life.”
2
Are you under 30? Join the stem cell register and be part of a one million strong team of lifesavers. Sign up at anthonynolan.org
If you’re over 30 you can still save lives. It costs Anthony Nolan £40 to recruit each lifesaver to the register, so please support with a gift now!
