I had only just been talking to Ann and Dan (Joel's mum and dad) when later today my dad told me that there had been another loss of a brave leukaemia sufferer over the weekend.
Nathan Hancock had been a promising footballer, but sadly his career was cut short by a broken leg. He then changed career and was enjoying his work with Linkage Community Trust at Toynton where he worked teaching sports to adults with learning difficulties when he was diagnosed with Leukaemia in February this year.
The main difficulty in treating Nathan was the fact that because he was of mixed race he required a specific and more difficult to obtain bone marrow transplant donor to be found, and sadly there is a shortage of bone marrow donors registered from ethnic communities.
His family tried desperately to find a suitable donor, but even though there was a fantastic turn out to sessions held in the local area, it was too late to save his life.
Nathan was only 22 years old, but before he passed away,yet he asked that the search for, and recruitment of, bone marrow donors should go on, so that others may be given a chance to beat this cruel and aggressive disease. It is up to us to ensure that that wish is pursued with as much vigor and urgency as we can muster, and to ensure that the push for more donors is sought, for the memory of Nathan,Joel and Adrian Sudbury and all the other brave fighters who are nothing less than hero's and who's examples of courage and bravery we can all seek inspiration from.
