Update after 6-year-old’s lifesaving transplant was left on tarmac
A devastated mother has shared an update after her son’s lifesaving bone marrow transplant was mistakenly left on the tarmac at a US airport.
Shalyn Eggleton’s son Mateoh suffers from a rare genetic disorder known as chronic granulomatous disease, which leaves his white blood cells unable to fight off certain types of bacteria.
The six-year-old boy has trialled nine experimental treatments in the last year alone, all of which failed to cure his condition.
Mateo’s final option was to undergo a bone marrow transplant which is very difficult to find a perfect biological match.
After an anxious three-and-a-half-year wait, Mateoh was finally paired with a matching donor from the US and was set to have the procedure.
In a catastrophic ordeal, the anxiously awaited transplant was mistakenly left on the tarmac at a US airport instead of being loaded onto the plane bound for Australia.
On a Facebook group dedicated to her son’s health journey, Ms Eggleton wrote, “Absolutely shocked, disappointed, furious and angry at the health system in the news we received today,”
“Unfortunately the donor cells from America have been ‘forgotten’ to be put on the courier plane to Australia, ultimately having to be sent back to where they were harvested to have more dry ice put in with them and stored.
“When they will arrive in Australia, we don’t know. For transplant we don’t know a date now.”
Thankfully, Mateoh’s mum was able to share positive news about her son’s health journey.
“The cells have arrived in Brisbane, they have been tested,” his mum wrote.
“They are viable. Transplant is a go ahead.”
Mateoh will soon be admitted to hospital for his procedure, which will take place on March 13.
“You give me the strength to smile through each day,” Ms Eggleton added.
“Even though I’m not ready to see you suffer and deteriorate the next few weeks.
“My boy this is your biggest fight, and I’ll be by your side every minute, hour, day, night, weeks and months. I’ll be fighting with you.”
Prior to the happy update, Mateoh’s mum expressed her anger and disappointment over the transplant debacle.
“This is totally unacceptable and a further investigation should be carried out and someone held responsible,” she had said.
“They honestly won’t know the condition of the cells until they arrive in Australia and the labs test them.
“This is our last option to trial. Mateoh isn’t getting any better, let’s make that clear.”
The Australian Bone Marrow Donor Registry is responsible for organising and transporting bone marrow and blood stem cell donations for patients in Australia, working closely with hospitals to ensure transplants run smoothly.
A spokeswoman for Queensland Children’s Hospital said Mateoh has been a long-term patient at Queensland Children’s Hospital, and his care team shared the family’s disappointment at the delivery delay of his transplant.
“Mateoh’s donor cells are currently in transit to Australia and their delayed arrival will not adversely impact Mateoh’s care,” she said.
“At all times our priority has been ensuring the donation remains viable so Mateoh’s bone-marrow transplant can safely proceed.”
According to The Courier Mail, the Australian Bone Marrow Donor Registry CEO Lisa Smith stated that the registry were aware of the situation and that an urgent investigation is underway to determine the cause.
Mateoh’s family have also created a GoFundMe to help with the medical expenses.
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