Carnival donor plea to save boy

The mother of a boy afflicted with a rare disease has urged the Asian community to register as bone marrow donors at the Notting Hill Carnival.

Dean Sheikh, seven, from Notting Hill, west London, suffers from Dyskeratosis Congenita, which destroys the body's immune system.

The rare condition currently affects only 38 people in the world.

Farah Ikbal urged Asians to register with the African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust, the carnival's official charity.

"I'm not a match for Dean and there are not enough Asian donors out there"
Farah Ikbal, Dean's mother

Ms Ikbal: "Dean is a lovely sociable boy. He is also very happy and very determined.

"A transplant would improve his quality of life. He wouldn't have to go to hospital all the time and his immune system would be stronger.

"I'm not a match for Dean and there are not enough Asian donors out there.

"Now we are on a huge mission to find a person who can help save his life".

Ms Ikbal said the condition has severly weakened Dean's immune system.

His condition has caused his nails and hair to degenerate and he has a life expectancy of five to eight years.

Lack of donors

The African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust (ACLT) said less than 3% of registered potential donors of bone marrow and cord blood come from ethnic minorities, which makes finding a match difficult.

The charity uses the west London carnival to raise awareness of the lack of donors.

Orin Lewis, co-founder of ACLT, said: "There are many more people like Dean who are still desperately looking for a bone marrow match.

"We hope that revellers at the Carnival will take the time to register as a donor before continuing with this year's celebrations."

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