IT BEGAN with a plea from a stricken young boy's parents for help after he was diagnosed with cancer.
Yesterday it resulted in more than 1000 people queuing around the block to help find a bone marrow donor for the sick youngster.
The attempt to find a donor for three-year-old Ryan Ferguson saw people from across Scotland flocking to East Kilbride in the hope they may be a match.
The youngster was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML) in August and doctors have said a bone marrow transplant is his only hope of survival.
He is currently undergoing chemotherapy and has been in isolation for several weeks.
Ryan’s parents, Stuart and Paula, together with the Anthony Nolan blood cancer charity, organised the drive.
The family, who are from East Kilbride, said they were “over the moon” with the response.
Mr Ferguson said: “Our lives have come crashing down and we can only pray that a life-saving match is found.
“Ryan’s fighting for his life, but we have to believe that he’ll survive this -- and he will if he gets his match.
“We’re determined to beat this cancer. And if we also find matches for others by getting thousands of people tested, then we will have taken something terrible, and made something good out of it.”
A total of 1074 people were tested over six hours at the Holiday Inn. Potential donors who attended gave a sample of saliva and filled in a short questionnaire.
Any successful donors will need to give a blood sample to confirm the match and could go on to donate stem cells, taken from either bone marrow in the pelvis or from blood.
Bone marrow contains stem cells essential for blood production. It will be several weeks before they know if a match has been found.
Lindsay MacCallum, regional fundraising manager for Anthony Nolan in Scotland, said: “Without a doubt, this has been the most successful donor clinic ever held in Scotland.
“We are absolutely delighted with the number of people who attended.”
Ryan’s brothers Calum, 10, and Andrew, eight, have already been tested. Mr Ferguson, 37, added: “Instead of sitting by a hospital bed and just watching Ryan trying to fight this, I’d rather put the word out there that donating isn’t a big deal.
“People don’t know how simple this is and how important it is.
“This is about raising awareness of how easy it is to join the Anthony Nolan register -- and how important it is.”
Ryan’s parents have also launched an appeal on the social networking site, Facebook, to find a donor for their son, who was due to start nursery school last month.
The Anthony Nolan charity was set up to fight leukaemia and other illnesses that require bone marrow transplants.
There are around 1600 people in Britain waiting to find a matching donor.
Anthony Nolan is the UK’s most successful bone marrow register.
The charity is particularly seeking young male donors and those of minority ethnic backgrounds.
To donate to Anthony Nolan, visit www.justgiving.com/RyanFerguson or text RYAN70 then a pound sign and the amount you wish to donate to 70070.
Sinclair Kerlin, who attended the drive after hearing about it through a family friend, said: “The simple reason I went along is to make Ryan better.
“He’s a fantastic wee boy and everyone just wants to see him get better.
“I might even discover I’m a match for someone else, so hopefully something good will come out of it.”
The 31-year-old, from Coatbridge, added: “I think bone marrow donation is something that we should all be doing.”
To register or to find out more information visit the website www.anthonynolan.org.uk.
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