Boy uses Help! to aid sick sister

A nine-year-old boy got over his fear of needles to aid his sister who needs a bone marrow donation by singing The Beatles classic Help!

Jack Hutchinson from Cardiff sang the song to get him through blood tests needed before the operation next month for his older sister Shannon, 13.

She has aplastic anaemia which means her bone marrow does not produce enough blood cells.

Despite a phobia of needles, Jack had tests and proved a perfect match.

Parents Tony and Georgina Hutchinson, of Ely, Cardiff, were desperate to find a donor after being told Shannon's illness could be fatal.

"It's hard enough for an adult to overcome a phobia so for a nine-year-old boy it's amazing"

But Jack, who had resisted having tests to see if he was a match because of his phobia, woke up one morning and volunteered.

"He had a bad experience when he was four and had his adenoids out and they couldn't get anywhere near him with a needle, explained Mr Hutchinson.

"He's got a real phobia, he would sweat, shake and cry.

"It's hard enough for an adult to overcome a phobia so for a nine-year-old boy it's amazing.

"I think he overheard me and my wife having a conversation about having no luck getting a donor, because he came into the room and asked me if Shannon was going to die.

"The next morning he woke up and said he wanted to do it."

Jack's tests showed he was a perfect match for Shannon.

His father added: "We were at the hospital yesterday and the doctor asked Jack how he felt about the operation and he said: 'I love my sister I'm glad I'm helping her'.

"He sat on my wife's lap while they were taking a blood sample and he started singing Help! because he'd had a 60s day in school.

"Even the doctor started singing."

Shannon is expected to begin treatment in December with Jack undergoing the bone marrow transplant a week later.

Mr Hutchinson said: "It's going to be a difficult few weeks and it could be a year before she's back to her normal self."

RELATED INTERNET LINKS
The Aplastic Anaemia Trust
The Anthony Booth Trust
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