Callum's Disney Trip!
Donation protected
Callum is a 6 year old boy who has been battling leukemia since he was 2 years old. After 3 years & 3 months of chemotherapy & other treatment, Callum was cancer free for 9 months when we received the devastating news that Callum had relapsed & required a bone marrow transplant to save his life.
Callum had his bone marrow transplant in December 2013 & he is currently still in isolation at Great Ormand Street Hospital recovering. He has been in isolation for just over 12 weeks now & still has a few more weeks ahead of him before he can go home.
When Callum relapsed he asked Mummy if he could go to disney when he is better & we would really appreciate your help in granting this wish for this truly inspiring brave little boy!!!
Please donate to Callum's disney fund no matter how small the amount, every penny counts!
We have found a cure for blood cancer & that cure is you!! Please register to be a donor & give the gift of life. You can register with either:
https://www.deletebloodcancer.org.uk/become-a-donor/register.html
http://www.anthonynolan.org/8-ways-you-could-save-life/donate-your-stem-cells/apply-join-our-register
Here is a little more about Callum's story. Please stay childhood cancer aware, it could save your child's life.......
As a young baby, Callum suffered from lots of illnesses & was always told he had another virus. The real concern came when shortly after Callum started walking he stopped walking again and walked with a limp. This is one of the first signs of leukemia! At 18 months old Callum lost his appetite, became very pale & weak. Again we were told it was just a virus.
One day callums mummy noticed his breathing was very shallow so she called an ambulance. During this call she removed his dummy to find his lips were turning blue. Callum spent 6 hours in the resus unit where a team of doctors worked to get Callum's condition stable & he received blood & platelet transfusions. After further tests, Callum's parents were told the devastating news that Callum had ALL (acute lymphoblastic leukemia). Callum was transferred to GOSH where things all went a bit strange. Callum's tests were not showing clearly which type of leukemia Callum had & the treatment for each type is very different, then unexpectedly all of Callum's bloods come up to normal levels. We were told at this point he had either had a virus that attacked his bone marrow or it would present as leukemia within a short while. We lived the next 6 months being so grateful of life & Callum being all better & then one day Callum began to limp again. Tests just before Callum's 2nd birthday confirmed it was indeed ALL & treatment began.
Treatment for boys with ALL is 3 years, 3 months & includes 2 intense rounds of chemo. Callum was extremely brave throughout & it was no easy ride by all means. During treatment Callum was admitted to intensive care after suffering a stroke from one of the drugs administered & then had to have injections twice a day for 6 months to thin the blood & prevent any other blood clots. Callum also contracted swine flu during treatment, which meant another life threatening battle for him to fight.
Whilst treatment has been extremely tough on Callum, especially when on high dosage steroids that cause extreme hunger & mood swings one week every month, Callum never complains. He just gets on with it.
After 9 months in remission, in June 2013, Callum come home from school complaining of severe leg pain. Knowing all to well the signs of leukemia, we knew this meant bad news & it was confirmed Callum had relapsed.
Callum went into isolation in November 2013 for his bone marrow transplant & had 3 days of radiotherapy in preparation. In December, Callum & our family was given the best Christmas present ever, the gift of life.
Callum is currently in isolation following his transplant 12 weeks ago; it has been an absolute hell of a journey so far for him & his parents, with him suffering from severe gut GVHD & infections; however thankfully he is now turning a corner & slowly getting better.
Callums results so far show that his body has accepted the new donor cells & things are heading in the right direction. We know Callum has a long road ahead with it taking around a year for his bone marrow to be fully functioning properly but we know he will get there & live a full happy long life.
Callum loves bowling, golf & football& we can't wait till his able to do all those things again.
Next year callum will be allowed to travel & will deserve a trip to disney more than anyone. Please help to grant him his wish.
During Callum's treatment a wonderful charity called be childhood cancer aware send Callum beads of courage so that he can show his journey with all different beads. More information can be found on http://www.bechildcanceraware.org
We can't begin to tell you how grateful we are to the 21 year old American male donor who gave up his time & cells to give Callum the gift of life. We are so so proud of Callum & his amazing parents who are all so very brave & strong.
Remember please register to be a donor & raise awareness of childhood cancers & thank you for taking the time to read Callum's story. I'm sure you'll agree he certainly deserves his trip to disney.
Callum had his bone marrow transplant in December 2013 & he is currently still in isolation at Great Ormand Street Hospital recovering. He has been in isolation for just over 12 weeks now & still has a few more weeks ahead of him before he can go home.
When Callum relapsed he asked Mummy if he could go to disney when he is better & we would really appreciate your help in granting this wish for this truly inspiring brave little boy!!!
Please donate to Callum's disney fund no matter how small the amount, every penny counts!
We have found a cure for blood cancer & that cure is you!! Please register to be a donor & give the gift of life. You can register with either:
https://www.deletebloodcancer.org.uk/become-a-donor/register.html
http://www.anthonynolan.org/8-ways-you-could-save-life/donate-your-stem-cells/apply-join-our-register
Here is a little more about Callum's story. Please stay childhood cancer aware, it could save your child's life.......
As a young baby, Callum suffered from lots of illnesses & was always told he had another virus. The real concern came when shortly after Callum started walking he stopped walking again and walked with a limp. This is one of the first signs of leukemia! At 18 months old Callum lost his appetite, became very pale & weak. Again we were told it was just a virus.
One day callums mummy noticed his breathing was very shallow so she called an ambulance. During this call she removed his dummy to find his lips were turning blue. Callum spent 6 hours in the resus unit where a team of doctors worked to get Callum's condition stable & he received blood & platelet transfusions. After further tests, Callum's parents were told the devastating news that Callum had ALL (acute lymphoblastic leukemia). Callum was transferred to GOSH where things all went a bit strange. Callum's tests were not showing clearly which type of leukemia Callum had & the treatment for each type is very different, then unexpectedly all of Callum's bloods come up to normal levels. We were told at this point he had either had a virus that attacked his bone marrow or it would present as leukemia within a short while. We lived the next 6 months being so grateful of life & Callum being all better & then one day Callum began to limp again. Tests just before Callum's 2nd birthday confirmed it was indeed ALL & treatment began.
Treatment for boys with ALL is 3 years, 3 months & includes 2 intense rounds of chemo. Callum was extremely brave throughout & it was no easy ride by all means. During treatment Callum was admitted to intensive care after suffering a stroke from one of the drugs administered & then had to have injections twice a day for 6 months to thin the blood & prevent any other blood clots. Callum also contracted swine flu during treatment, which meant another life threatening battle for him to fight.
Whilst treatment has been extremely tough on Callum, especially when on high dosage steroids that cause extreme hunger & mood swings one week every month, Callum never complains. He just gets on with it.
After 9 months in remission, in June 2013, Callum come home from school complaining of severe leg pain. Knowing all to well the signs of leukemia, we knew this meant bad news & it was confirmed Callum had relapsed.
Callum went into isolation in November 2013 for his bone marrow transplant & had 3 days of radiotherapy in preparation. In December, Callum & our family was given the best Christmas present ever, the gift of life.
Callum is currently in isolation following his transplant 12 weeks ago; it has been an absolute hell of a journey so far for him & his parents, with him suffering from severe gut GVHD & infections; however thankfully he is now turning a corner & slowly getting better.
Callums results so far show that his body has accepted the new donor cells & things are heading in the right direction. We know Callum has a long road ahead with it taking around a year for his bone marrow to be fully functioning properly but we know he will get there & live a full happy long life.
Callum loves bowling, golf & football& we can't wait till his able to do all those things again.
Next year callum will be allowed to travel & will deserve a trip to disney more than anyone. Please help to grant him his wish.
During Callum's treatment a wonderful charity called be childhood cancer aware send Callum beads of courage so that he can show his journey with all different beads. More information can be found on http://www.bechildcanceraware.org
We can't begin to tell you how grateful we are to the 21 year old American male donor who gave up his time & cells to give Callum the gift of life. We are so so proud of Callum & his amazing parents who are all so very brave & strong.
Remember please register to be a donor & raise awareness of childhood cancers & thank you for taking the time to read Callum's story. I'm sure you'll agree he certainly deserves his trip to disney.
Organizer
Karen Purser
Organizer
