Buckley couple thank community for their support as dad-of-two receives life-saving treatment

The Leader previously reported that Matt Davies was given 12-months to live without a stem cell transplant, which sparked a massive support network, with thousands signing up to become a donor.

Wife Sarah Davies urged people to sign up to become a donor, which could save the lives of many people – and over 7,000 had signed up from her link alone.

Before Christmas, Matt was given the news that there was a match for him and he could start his treatment in January.

She told the Leader: “It was a success, at the moment the cells in his body are 99.5 per cent donor and 0.5 per cent his. In time they will be 100 per cent donor so it’s definitely working which is fantastic.

“We are on day 67 and on day 100 we can have a bone marrow scan to find out what stage we are.

“GvHD is our biggest worry at the moment. Small amounts after a transplant can be good because it means his body is fighting but in huge amounts it can be damaging. It is starting to affect his gut now.

“Because we live in Wales and have done for several years, we couldn’t get the funding for the therapy which is what the Christie does, but we are now in the process of getting the drug for him, we are in constant talks so it’s a frustrating game at the moment.

“We need to start this medication to get rid of this GvHD before it becomes chronic, so we are still in the process of getting that drug but he’s doing really well.”

Graft versus host disease (GvHD) is a condition that might occur after a transplant. In GvHD, the donated bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cells view the recipient's body as foreign, and the donated cells then attack the body.

Matt was diagnosed with cancer last year and beat it, however less than eight months later – after having his three-monthly routine bone marrow results – he was told the leukaemia was back and his only option was a stem cell transplant.

He has since made ‘significant’ progress however the pair say they are worried about the latest coronavirus outbreak due to Matt essentially having no immune system.

Sarah said: “At the moment with coronavirus it’s very scary because he has a low immune system, he is basically starting from scratch with his immune system so can’t get immunisations until he is ‘one year old’. We have decided to take the kids out of school because we don’t want him catching anything.

“He’s done absolutely fantastic and is now back to eating.

“Matt has been really lucky. They are pleased with his progress, but they would like his GvHD levels to be lower.”

Although Matt faced no real complications during the treatment however has lost a significant amount of weight.

A JustGiving Page has been set up to raise funds for the Christie in Manchester where Matt has been receiving his treatment.

Sarah added: “Even still now I will be walking somewhere and random people who I’ve never met before will ask me how he is doing. It’s actually been so positive. I don’t think people realise how much it has helped, just them asking it has really helped us get through this and knowing that a lot of people are supporting us.

“On social media we have spoken to so many people in similar situations as ours, it’s about helping one another, and we have made friends for life.

“Thank you so much for your support, it means a lot to us and it’s lovely for us to read all the comments, even if we cannot reply to them all.”

Matt’s progress can be found on social media via the Team Davies Facebook and Instagram page.