Cash race to save life of little Joshua; ILLNESS.PARENTS Amy and Stephen Deller are racing against time in an attempt to save the life of their critically ill son. Joshua, 15 months, has a rare form of blood cancer and his best hope - an antibody therapy - is available only in the US and costs pounds 150,000. The tot has already had chemotherapy, surgery, bone marrow bone marrow, soft tissue filling the spongy interiors of animal bones. Red marrow is the principal organ that forms blood cells in mammals, including humans (see blood). In children, the bones contain only red marrow. and stem cell treatments Medical researchers believe that stem cell treatments have the potential to change the face of human disease and alleviate suffering. A number of stem cell treatments already exist, although most are still experimental and/or costly, with the notable exception of bone marrow plus radiotherapy radiotherapy /ra·dio·ther·a·py/ (-ther´ah-pe) treatment of disease by means of ionizing radiation; tissue may be exposed to a beam of radiation, or a radioactive element may be contained in devices (e.g. , yet his chance of survival is just 20% because of the threat of relapse. The US treatment could take that to 50%. Amy, 29, and Stephen, 37, of Woking, Surrey, have now launched an appeal to help raise the money for him. Mum Amy said: "It's been life-affirming to see strangers give up money and time. "We've raised pounds 70,000 but Joshua needs to start the treatment immediately." Thousands have signed up to a Facebook support group and an equal number have raised money through charity work and donations. To help Joshua visit www.joshua-appeal.org CAPTION(S): TREATMENT Baby Joshua |
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