Toddler's bone marrow transplant

Iona's parents still want people of mixed-ethnicity to become donors

A toddler with leukaemia who was given just months to live has had her vital bone marrow transplant.

Iona Stratton was being treated in Oxford. Finding a suitable donor was difficult because of her ethnicity. Her mother is Chinese and her father white.

Her parents, from Tring in Hertfordshire, called for mixed-race adults to donate and a match was found in Australia.

Iona's mother, Anita Kan, said the next few weeks would prove crucial.

The bone marrow transplant took place on the 23-month-old on Wednesday.

The donor is from Australia and is a perfect "10-out-of-10" match.

The transplant is thought to be her last chance of survival.

The family appealed for donations on TV and radio and set up an appeal on the internet using the Facebook social networking site, which attracted thousands of members.

Ms Kan said: "She's stable. The transplant was like a blood transfusion and she was asleep most of the day and given lots of painkillers.

"She woke up today and seems fine and quite herself.

"The next few days she's going to suffer a bit from the radio[therapy] and chemotherapy and we really have to keep an eye on her in case she develops a disease which means immune cells from the donor marrow attack Iona's system."

The Anthony Nolan Trust, a charity which matches leukaemia patients with donors, said of the potential donors listed on its register, fewer than 4% of volunteers were Asian.

The figure is much lower for many other ethnic groups.

People interested in becoming a potential donor should call the Anthony Nolan Trust on 020 7284 1234.