Boy’s first days outside six months after stem cell transplant from baby’s umbilical blood

22 July 2024

A boy has been allowed outside for the first time six months after receiving a stem cell transplant made from the blood of a baby’s umbilical cord.

Gunner Lewis-Vale, aged 5, from Highley in Shropshire, has a life-limiting metabolic disorder which stops his body breaking down sugar.

Gunner hugging sister and smilingHe received a stem cell transplant shortly after Christmas in January 2024, using umbilical cord blood cells generously donated to NHS Blood and Transplant just before Christmas 2008, 15 years earlier.


The cells were cryopreserved with liquid nitrogen vapour at below -150 Celsius until the match was found.

Gunner’s mum Holly, 34, an administration assistant in audiology, and husband Jamie, 34, a bathroom and kitchen fitter, are now supporting NHS Blood and Transplant’s appeal for more people to register as stem cell donors. The stem cells for Gunner’s transplant were provided by the NHS Blood and Transplant Cord Blood bank team in Bristol.

Holly said: “We had the amazing news that after six months in isolation, Gunner’s immune system is now producing had enough white blood cells for him to start venturing outside, which means he can enjoy the summer.

“So far, we have ventured to the park, skate park, dog walking, school runs for his big sister and out to feed the ducks. Gunner’s cheeky personality is coming right back. He’s a clever boy with an amazing bond with his big sister Daisy.

“We are eternally grateful to the incredible mother who donated their baby’s umbilical cord. The new white blood cells from the donor will hopefully make the enzyme he lacked which breaks down sugar.”Gunner and mum, Holly

Gunner has Mucopolysaccharidosis Type I Hurler Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that affects many parts of the body.

His first symptom was a pushed out belly button. It emerged his body was storing sugars in his liver and spleen causing them to be swollen. He has faced many more complications and symptoms as his body is started storing sugars throughout his organs, bones and brain.

Gunner’s treatment has included enzyme infusions and an earlier stem cell transplant from a donor in Germany which failed.

This new, second stem cell transplant is aimed at extending his life and giving him a better quality of life. When was Gunner was diagnosed aged 17 months in March 2021, his family were told that without a transplant he had around one to two years to live.

Stem cell donors are constantly needed because around a third of people who need a transplant have no suitable match in their family.

Cord blood is the blood that remains in the placenta and umbilical cord following the birth of a baby. It is rich in blood stem cells similar to those found in bone marrow, which and can be used to treat many different cancers, immune deficiencies and genetic disorders.

Guy Parkes, Head of Stem Cell Donation and Transplant at NHS Blood and Transplant, said: “We’re delighted to see Gunner playing outside for the first time since he received his stem cell transplant from a cord blood unit donated to our NHS cord blood bank.

“Stem cell transplants are only possible thanks to the generosity of donors and we thank the mother who chose to donate her babies’ umbilical cord more than 10 years ago. We wish Gunner and his family all the best.”

NHS Blood and Transplant collects cord blood at several London hospitals and there is a particular need for more donors of black and Asian heritage.

Find out more about donating stem cells, including through cord blood stem cells