A Queensland boy is hanging on to hope after donated stem cells were left behind on the tarmac at an American airport this week.
Mateoh Eggleton, 6, was diagnosed with granulomatous disease in 2019, which was cured after his first bone marrow transplant in 2020.
But it left him with hemolytic anaemia — a disorder where red blood cells are destroyed faster than they can be produced.
Mateoh's mother Shalyn Eggleton told ABC Radio's Rebecca Levingston on Friday the family was informed by their oncologist on Tuesday that stem cells to help Mateoh were left at the airport and were not loaded onto the plane.
"So that pretty much means they've just been left there," Ms Eggleton said.
"They then had to get sent back to the harvesting centre for more dry ice and now we wait for them to hopefully arrive today," she said.
Ms Eggleton said finding a donor for the transplant had not been an easy process and took a long time.
"He had his first bone marrow transplant in 2020, and that took roughly six to seven months to find that first donor," she said.
"And then for this second transplant that is scheduled, we actually found a donor last year just before Christmas, but they actually declined to donate.
"And this is the third donor we've now found and they were harvested around the 7th of February."
She said the search for a donor had included Australia.
"We actually couldn't find anyone so we've had to outsource to different countries," she said.
Ms Eggleton said her family was given no explanation for the airport error.
"I spoke with the CEO of the Australian Bone Marrow Donor Registry, and it's under investigation but we have no answers as of yet," she said.
"I was just devastated to be honest, because he's fought this hard for three-and-a-half years and just for this to happen, that's not fair," she said.
Ms Eggleton said the stem cells would need to be tested in a lab to determine if they could be used for the transplant.
"Mateoh knows how sick he is, and he knows this is his last chance because he's been fighting for three and a half years and he's very knowledgeable as he sees everything day in and day out.
"This is his last chance at hope," she said.
Cells arrive
Australian Bone Marrow Donor Registry chief executive Lisa Smith said the registry was yet to receive a report from the couriers but an investigation was ongoing.
"We can confirm that the cells have arrived at the Queensland Children's Hospital but we understand that the investigation and report will need to be done properly," she said.
A spokesperson for Children's Health Queensland said the Children's Hospital "shares the family's disappointment at this unforeseen delay in the delivery of his donor cells".
However, the late arrival of the cells would not "adversely impact Mateoh's care".
"At all times our priority has been ensuring the donation remains viable so Mateoh's bone marrow transplant can safely proceed," the spokesperson said.
