Two year old donor in bid to save big brother from leukaemia
A five-year-old boy who is battling leukaemia is set to receive a life-saving gift from his little sister.
Ned Isham and his family have had to relocate to Melbourne for several months while he undergoes an urgent bone marrow transplant.
As it turns out, Ned's little sister Eleanor, 2, is a perfect match for a bone marrow transplant.
"It's a wonderful gift for him, but it's yet again us handing another child over for a general anaesthetic and procedures," Emily said.
The little boy should be in kindergarten - instead, he is enduring another round of chemotherapy 600 kilometres from his home in Hobart.
Diagnosed with leukaemia three years ago, Ned was in remission until June this year, when his family received some devastating news.
"The bloods came back abnormal, showing he'd relapsed," his mother Emily Isham said.
"His bone marrow was already at 89 per cent full of leukaemia cells."
The entire Isham family was told to pack up their home in Hobart and relocate to the Children's Hospital in Melbourne for nine months while Ned undergoes urgent treatment.
"He's struggled, he asks a lot of questions," Emily said.
"Why is he losing his hair again? This is the third time he's lost his hair. Why does he not get to go to kinder with his kinder friends?"
Emily and her husband Seth have given up their jobs to be with Ned, while baby number four is due in three weeks.
After his transplant, Ned will be in isolation for up to six weeks, with even his sisters unable to visit him.
"He's just a resilient kid, we can all learn from Ned," his father said.
Anyone wanting to help can donate to the family's Go Fund Me campaign here.
