Rachael's fundraiser for Blood Cancer UK
Rachael Raw is raising money for Blood Cancer UK
In memory of Angela Raw
Story
In the early hours of Friday the 18th of July, my beautiful mum passed away due to complications following a stem cell transplant.
Late last year, Mum was diagnosed with an aggressive form of blood cancer - Acute Myeloid Leukaemia. Soon after her diagnosis, we were then informed that mum also had an extremely rare blood cancer called Mast Cell Cytosis. The combination of these two cancers meant that my mum’s treatment options were limited. Mum bravely chose to go forward with a stem cell transplant, in the hope that this could cure both of her cancers. A kind young man in Germany was willing to donate his cells to give my mum a chance at survival. The transplant itself went smoothly and mum responded well - but unfortunately an infection set in, which she was unable to fight. After 10 days in intensive care, with loved ones by her side, my mum left us to go to heaven.
In memory of mum - I would like to give those who knew and loved her a chance to donate to a charity that continues to support ongoing research into blood cancer treatment. Certainly in mums case, it was very rare for two blood cancers to occur at once, and research studies are lacking in this context.
If you would like to contribute in another way, please consider joining the stem cell donor register. It’s free to sign up and all you need to do is return a mouth swab kit that will be sent to you in the post. I will never get to meet the man who donated his cells to mum, but I will be eternally grateful for this selfless act of kindness.