Sisters plan donor drive to help mum's treatment

Two sisters from Scotland have organised a stem cell donor drive in Leicester to try to find a match for their mother.

Shehnaz Ossman, 52, from Dundee, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) - a type of blood cancer - in July 2024.

She is in remission but continues to receive chemotherapy and needs a transplant due to the aggressive nature of her cancer.

Her daughters Ruqueia and Aisha said no family members in Scotland were a stem cell match, so they were moving their search to Leicester where their extended family lived.

The donor drive - at Judgemeadow Community College between 10:00 and 16:00 GMT on Saturday - will be open to the general public.

Ruqueia said she hoped the event would find a donor for her mother or, at least, help another family in a similar situation.

"It really is giving someone a second chance at life," the 31-year-old said.

"My cousins, aunts and uncles are in Leicester, all of them love Leicester, and for many of them my mum is like a mum to them."

According to Cancer Research UK, AML starts from young white blood cells in the bone marrow.

In a transplant, the new stem cells make their way to the bone marrow before making the blood cells required to support recovery.

Donor charity DKMS is helping the family organise the event and will run it on the day.

Dr Tasneem Ali, from the charity, said anyone could be a match for Shehnaz, but those with the same ethnicity were more likely to be a suitable donor.

She added: "It's just a few hours of your time and donating a bit of blood, you can potentially save somebody's life."

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