A CAMPAIGN to save a five year old cancer sufferer has become one of the fastest online charity appeals after reaching its £500,000 target in just three weeks.
The parents of Oscar Saxelby-Lee are gobsmacked to have reached the huge amount to fund the emergency life saving treatment abroad in under a month.
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Thousands have pledged the cash meaning he will now fly to Singapore to undergo potentially life-saving CAR-T cell therapy and a second bone marrow transplant in a bid to save his life.
Oscar’s battle has always drawn huge support and in March almost 5,000 people queued in the rain to find a stem cell donor to cure Oscar, from Worcester.
But despite finding a match, doctors discovered the rare T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia had returned so Oscar’s parents launched the new appeal in September.
Olivia, 26, and Jamie, 23, have now thanked kindhearted givers who organised events from sponsored bike rides to non-uniform days to raise the incredible sum.
In a statement, the pair said: “We are absolutely gobsmacked with the amount of humbling support we have received since the word go.
“Over the last three weeks, we have watched the people of Worcestershire and beyond work together to raise this seemingly impossible amount of money.
“It has been heart-warming to see schools, businesses, individuals and even children giving all they can.
‘ABSOLUTELY GOBSMACKED’
“We would like to thank you from the bottom of our hearts – you are truly amazing.”
Doctors at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, where Oscar has been treated since last December, say he has only a short window in which he will be strong enough to travel.
But Oscar’s parents have urged people to carry on supporting them, saying they need help more than ever.
They added: “Now we need to make sure that we have contingency funds available should Oscar need more care or have a more complicated recovery whilst there.
“As we all know, this journey hasn’t gone smoothly so we must be prepared for any additional hurdles.
“As you will have seen from Oscar’s Facebook page, Oscar has needed to receive more treatment and have further tests done whilst we have been fundraising to keep his leukaemia at bay.
“Now we have the difficult bit, the waiting.
“The initial funds are ready. Oscar’s medical team now need to wait for the results of his further tests, which determine the next steps.
“When the best treatment plan for Oscar is confirmed by his medical team, having this funding will allow us to move very quickly.
“Thank you so much to the people of Worcestershire and beyond for making this possible and once again doing everything in their power to help save our boy.”
