A man whose life was saved by the generosity of the people of Bristol has become a dad - to twins.
Mike Brandon had just a few weeks to live in 2016, as leukaemia ravaged his body, when his wife Kate issued a desperate appeal to people to donate money to save him - and pay to take part in the trial of a treatment that cost £400,000 and was only available in the USA.
The people of Bristol responded in a remarkable way - and the incredible sum of money was raised in just nine days, and he was sent over to the States for treatment.
After a long battle, the treatment worked - and Mike has been in remission for a couple of years now.
And now, the couple, from Westbury-on-Trym, have shared the best news ever on their old Donate4Mike Facebook page - Kate has given birth to twins.
After first announcing Kate was pregnant last August, now she has posted on the page, describing the birth of her two new babies as ‘a stupendously good news story’.
“I’ve almost got exactly what I said I’d always wanted, but not quite,” she said, reflecting on the couple’s extraordinary journey since 2014, and hinting that having twins was not quite part of the plan.
Back in 2014, Kate issued her first appeal - this time for a stem cell donor - as Mike was diagnosed with leukaemia for the first time.
That worked initially, but the acute form of the disease came back in 2016, and the couple had just a week or so to raise the money.
A huge appeal went viral in Bristol, and a total of 22,600 people dipped into their pockets and helped Mike - and the appeal was successful and the treatment worked.
“Thank you again from the bottom of my heart to the 22,600 people, most of whom were strangers.
“You helped my friends and I raise almost half a million pounds in 11 days,” said Kate.
“You saved more than my husband’s life with your hope and your generosity,” she added.
With Mike firmly on the road to recovery, and the fundraising page now inactive, Kate urged anyone touched by their story to keep supporting people going through Car T Cell Therapy - the treatment Mike had that is now available in Bristol.
There is a fundraising pot with the BRI’s Above and Beyond Charity - anyone wanting to donate should visit here, and type ‘Donate4TCellFund’ in the first box on the donation page.
