Selwyn_Times: November 23, 2022

Wednesday November 23 2022 Selwyn Times
Latest Canterbury news at starnews.co.nz
Stem cell donor bid to help Mea
• By Nathan Morton
HUNDREDS turned out on
Sunday to have their cheeks
swabbed in the hopes of
becoming a stem cell donor to
save the life of an eight-year-old
with a rare blood condition.
Mea Richards, a West Rolleston
School pupil, was diagnosed
with a aplastic anaemia five
months ago, and her parents put
out a call on social media asking
for stem cell donations.
Mother Nicole Richards said
they swabbed about 220 people
at the venue (Hornby Working
Men’s Club) on Sunday, with
another 50 swabs to be done this
week.
“Thank you just doesn’t seem
enough. What an amazing turnout,”
she said.
“Ray (father) and I are so, so
thankful to you all for turning
up, sharing our posts far and
wide and making this possible
for us in the hope to match Mea!
Please share to your friends or
pass on our thanks.’’
Ray Richards said he was
blown away by the generosity of
his community.
“It’s humbling to see people
coming out of the woodwork –
they don’t even know Mea, so it’s
amazing.”
Mea, the youngest child of the
Richards family, is described as
a “bubbly girl” who was initially
HOPEFUL: Mea is described as a “bubbly girl” who was
initially admitted to hospital with influenza.
admitted to hospital with influenza.
The resulting blood tests
revealed all her red and white
blood cells had dramatically
dropped, and more tests confirmed
the diagnosis of aplastic
anaemia.
The condition means Mea
suffers from regular shortness of
oN sAle Now!
breath, is vulnerable to bruising
and will bleed easily.
She’s also prone to infections,
as her white blood cells aren’t
there to combat them.
When the family approached
medical experts about securing a
bone marrow donor for her, they
were initially told there would be
plenty of donors available.
Ray said they were later told
this was a miscommunication.
“That was hard to hear, there
were only three in the world –
one in New Zealand, one in the
US and one in Brazil and all of
them aren’t close enough, which
means she would have lots of
diverse effects [if they were
used].”
The intention behind Sunday
was to find another option.
Attendees were swabbed on the
cheek and samples were sent
back for testing to determine a
potential candidate.
From there, it’s another
medical exam to ensure the
candidate is healthy and ensure
they have the right tissue type.
The candidate will then remain
on the donor list until they’re 60.
Ray said his family’s personal
hope is a donor is found for Mea,
but the act of donations alone
means more people will be on
the donor list to help others out.
After Sunday, it will be a slow
waiting game as blood-matching
takes place behind the scenes.
“What Mea said to me and
my wife in the hospital was:
‘I’m over having this stupid
disease’ and that, coming from
an eight-year-old, is pretty hard.
To have a donor would give her a
cure and allow her to carry on a
normal life.”
– NZ Herald
NEWS 3
In Brief
HOUSE PRICES HOLD FIRM
The median house sale price in
the district was down 0.6 per
cent, to $815,000, in October,
from $820,000 in October last
year, the latest data from the Real
Estate Institute of New Zealand
shows. The median price across
the country decreased 7.5 per cent
for the same period, to $825,000,
while it decreased just 0.9 per
cent to $659,000 in Canterbury.
Selwyn’s and Canterbury’s prices
are holding relatively firmly
compared to national prices.
ROUNDABOUTS PROGRESS
Construction of roundabouts in
Prebbleton, at the intersections
of Shands Rd and Trents Rd, and
Shands Rd and Hamptons Rd, are
set to begin construction in one
year. District council transportation
staff say in their report for this
week’s district council meeting
that design, land acquisition, and
consenting for the roundabouts
is progressing. Seal widening on
Trents Rd and Hamptons Rd is
also to be undertaken, and is in the
design stage.
HEALTH TALKS
Community Care Lincoln is
holding health talks towards its
goal of assisting older people
remaining active in their homes.
It will hold a free seminar about
osteoporosis and bone health at
its Rata Foundation Wing, 16
Lyttelton St, Wednesday next
week at 1pm.
DECEMBER 2022
– FEBRUARY 2023
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