A COLWALL man whose life was at severe risk after being diagnosed with a rare form of leukaemia has raised more than £1,000 for the charity which helped save him.
Steven Shaw has been selling plants at his home to help give something back to the Cure Leukaemia charity based in Birmingham.
Mr Shaw thought he made a full recovery when he was treated at Worcestershire Royal Hospital more than five years ago after falling ill with severe anaemia.
But his recovery was shortlived and less than a year later he was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia.
He was then introduced to drug trials and specialist staff, sponsored by Cure Leukaemia, before being signed up to be the first UK patient in a new trial to assess the effectiveness of Minimal Residual Disease (MRD) monitoring.
Cure Leukaemia was established in 2003 to allow patients with blood cancer in our region to access the remarkably effective new treatments which were then becoming available.
The technology, much more sensitive than standard laboratory tests, detected very small quantities of cancer genes at a time when Steven may otherwise have declared remission following three rounds of chemotherapy in Worcester.
As a consequence he was referred to Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham for a stem cell transplant.
And Cure Leukaemia has continued to influence Steven’s treatments. Following improvement of Steven’s “donor bone marrow” through Donor Lymphocyte Infusion he became free from MRD detectable cancer cells and has remained in good health so for three and a half years
He said: “Thanks to Cure Leukaemia and the wonderful Haematology staff that I have encountered in Worcester and Birmingham, I have now been able to marry my partner Trish, meet my grandson Teddy and escort my daughter Hannah up the aisle.
“To be diagnosed with leukaemia is a shocking experience for anyone, and for their loved ones, but I firmly believe that being positive and placing your trust in the excellent teams of doctors, nurses and clinicians is the best way to maximise the chances of recovery.”
Rather than paying the annual £100 to the charity as a gesture, Steven wanted to do something a bit more fulfilling to say thank you.
And his plants have gone down a treat after raising more than £800 this year through sales – a huge increase from the £206 he made in 2015.
He added: “Not only have they (people) purchased plants and spread the word about their quality but I have also received donations of hundreds of recycled pots and even plants to sell or propagate.
“It was recently overheard in a local pub that someone in Colwall was selling plants that can cure leukaemia. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if they really could.
“But at least they have now been used to help Cure Leukaemia and I can recommend them as a way of keeping active and making many new friends.”
To read Steven’s full story visit www.cureleukaemia.co.uk.
