Charity profile
What the ACLT has achieved
The ACLT (African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust) is a leading
Cancer charity dedicated to raising the awareness of the
shortage of Black and Ethnic Minority donors on the UK Bone
Marrow, Blood and Organ registers. We recruit potential donors
at ACLT registration drives, via saliva or blood, and involve them
in the process of offering hope and a healthy future to someone
whose disorder might otherwise prove fatal.
n Raised the number of Black and Mixed Race people on
the UK Bone Marrow register from 550 to over 50,000
potential donors
The trust was catapulted into existence in 1996 by Beverley
De-Gale and Orin Lewis, the parents of leukaemia sufferer
Daniel De-Gale (pictured above right), whose desperate search
for a matching bone marrow donor for Daniel in 1996 revealed
that there were just 550 Black or Mixed Race people on the UK
registers. This meant that Daniel had a 1 in 250,000 chance of
finding a donor, compared with (at best) a 1 in 5 chance for
a White person.
The parents made it their mission to increase the number of
Black and Mixed Race donors, and to help others like their son.
The chance of finding a match is greater if the donor is from
the same racial background, as bone marrow contains racially
specific characteristics, and a compatible donor for Daniel
could therefore only be found within these communities. Black
and Ethnic Minority sufferers are at a severe disadvantage due
to lack of awareness, and the myths, fears and taboos around
giving blood and donating organs for transplant purposes.
n
Helped save well over fifty lives by sourcing matching Bone
Marrow donors such as Homeland actor David Harewood
(above left), Dr Kamisha Guthrie, footballer Clive Wilson,
Debra Forth, Helen Robinson, Naomi Williams, Johanna
Charles and Francesca Clarke.
n
Sarah Thompson (below left), London who received a
match from Michelle Duncan in 2006; “I’m forever indebted
to the ACLT. Without it, I might not have received a donor
with a match and probably would not be alive today”
she said.
n Promoted the need for regular blood donation, and the
use of Organ donor cards within the Black and Ethnic
Minority communities.
n
Beverley De-Gale and Orin Lewis have each been awarded
with an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire) in
the Queen’s Honours List by the Prime Minister and Cabinet
Secretary in recognition for services to healthcare.
Eventually Daniel won his battle against leukaemia when on
16th June 1999, at the age of 12, he received a bone marrow
transplant from an unrelated American donor, Doreene Carney,
(below) at Great Ormond Street Hospital. This enabled Daniel
to live a full and fruitful life, including successfully passing his
exams at school and University.
ACLT, Southbridge House, Southbridge Place, Croydon CR0 4HA
Tel: 020 8240 4480 Fax: 020 8240 4481 Email: [email protected] Web: www.aclt.org
Daniel was in full remission and free of cancer, but due to
complications leading to multiple organ failure, he died aged 21,
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