Officer’s appeal as daughter faces life-threatening disorder

24 January 2022

A West Midlands Police officer is urging Federation members to join the stem cell register after her teenage daughter was diagnosed with two life-threatening and rare blood disorders.

DS Sally Olsen is making the appeal for 13-year-old Izzie who is in desperate need of a stem cell transplant, as she continues to fight the disorders.

Shortly after being diagnosed with aplastic anaemia, a condition which occurs when your body stops producing enough new blood cells, in June last year, Izzie was given the news that she had a secondary extremely rare condition, paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria (PNH), which is when red blood cells are easily destroyed.

“It was very, very sudden,” explains Sally, “Izzie is a really keen netball player and it was literally like one weekend she was playing netball and then the next weekend, she had developed this unexplainable large bruising.

“Izzie was just 12 at the time and it was very frightening. Izzie’s life has turned upside down.

“We have to think about what life looks like for Izzie now, both short and long-term. And also for Izzie’s 10-year-old sister and the rest of our family. Life totally changes.”

Having the conditions means that Izzie is extremely vulnerable to infection, which has meant she has extremely limited contact with her friends, is currently home-schooled and is not allowed to enjoy playing netball anymore.

Life is now centred around hospital visits, with regular routine appointments taking place every Monday and Thursday.

“We’re watching her all the time. Any bruising or blood blisters, and we need to go to hospital immediately,” said Sally.

The best solution for Izzie would be to find a perfect match stem transplant donor.

Sally added: “There’s no denying, these are life-threatening conditions, it’s heartbreaking. Finding a donor would literally change Izzie’s life.”

Becoming a stem cell donor is easy and, if you are found to be a match, you will then be asked to take part in a preliminary health check before donating.

There are two different ways a person can donate stem cells, either peripheral stem cell donation or bone marrow donation. Izzie needs to receive stem cell donation, which is very similar to somebody giving blood.

Depending on your age, you can register to donate with Anthony Nolan (if you are aged between 16 and 30) or DKMS (if you are over 30 and up until 60, as long as you meet other specific criteria). Both organisations match donors and patients across the world.

“So many people are waiting to find a donor, not just Izzie. You could help someone across the world. You could literally save their life within a day,” said Sally.

There will be a virtual donor drive especially for officers taking place online on 2 and 9 February. Members can access this by visiting the Force intranet.

There will also be an in-person drive at Lloyd House on 2 and 9 March from 10am until 4pm.

Sally is asking as many people as possible to attend the events if they can, reassuring those who go that registration takes a maximum of five minutes.