MANILA \u2013Lia Weekes and her husband, who reside in British Columbia, are appealing to potential donors who may be a match to their son diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia.<\/p>\n
The whole family has been vacationing in the Philippines when six-year-old Joshua started having flu-like symptoms. Upon returning to Canada, it has been found out that the boy has acute myeloid leukemia.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a complete nightmare. Everything was normal and then everything changed\u2026 And now we\u2019re fighting for our baby and he\u2019s fighting for his life,\u201d Weekes says in a CBC report.<\/p>\n
Joshua has since been confined at the B.C. Children\u2019s Hospital as he undergoes chemotherapy treatment and receives blood transfusions. In the coming months, he will need a bone marrow transplant. Finding a match, however, may be challenging because of his mixed ethnicity.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe understands he has some bad cells that we need to get out. He knows he needs to be strong and brave because it can be very scary to have all these strangers poking at you and all of these beeps and alarms\u2026 But he can\u2019t understand why mommy and daddy can\u2019t just fix it,\u201d she says in the same report.<\/p>\n
Weekes is part Filipino and British while her husband is of Icelandic and Caribbean origin. Either of them may be a potential match but a successful transplant is more likely with an external donor who has a similar racial background.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe basically want to appeal to anyone who has any of those combinations or any of those backgrounds to come forward as a donor and register,\u201d Weekes calls out through social media.<\/p>\n