Let's back Zac: Fund tops £630,000 as Broseley youngster waits for treatment to start in USA
As Zac Oliver and his family settle into their American hotel ready for his life-saving treatment, the trust supporting him has revealed that £630,000 has now been raised in his name.
They started their trip to Philadelphia on Monday from Manchester Airport, with hundreds of people offering their support and good wishes via social media.
Four-year-old Zac has an incredibly rare form of childhood leukaemia called Near Haploid. He is believed to be the only child in the UK to have the condition.
In the coming weeks Zac will begin his CAR-T Therapy, which it is estimated will give him a 60 to 80 per cent chance of survival.
See also:
Zac’s father, Mark Garbett, said the total raised has now topped £630,000 – £130,000 more than the family were originally aiming for.
Most of the money has been collected by people in and around Shropshire who heard Zac’s story and decided they wanted to help.
“It is heart-warming how Zac’s plight has caught people’s attention,” Mark said.
“The good news is no matter what happens to Zac, there should be money left over at the end of this for us to help another child.”
Mark will be flying out to join Zac in the coming days.
Marie Owen, Zac’s grandmother, shared the news that Zac and his mother, Hannah Oliver-Willets, had made it to America on social media.
“They’re at the hotel, which Hannah describes as wonderful,” she wrote.
“We will keep everyone updated as soon as we hear anything.”
The post has had more than 530 reactions, and nearly 50 comments and shares on Facebook.
Responding to the post, Helen Cooper said: “The whole of – and everyone else – is rooting for you all. To hear that they are finally there is fabulous.”
How you can continue to help:
Anyone who wants to support the fundraising campaign should visit justgiving.com/crowdfunding/zac-oliver
People can also join Zac's Facebook support page which is called 'Zachariah's's fight against Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia'.
People can also donate using their mobile phone by texting ZACH75 £1 to 70070.
Delia Cartledge said: “Zac, you’re an inspirational little boy and I hope all goes well.”
As well as announcing that Zac had arrived in Philidelphia ready for his treatment at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the family also announced that £630,000 had been raised in Zac’s name.
A lot of the money was raised through sponsored challenges, personal donations and a “wear red for Zac” day that hundreds of schools and businesses took part in.
There was also a music festival held in Zac’s name at Telford Town Park.
Along the way he has been backed by superstar guitarist Mark Knopfler, X-Factor’s Simon Cowell and a mystery donor who gave £100,000.
The additional money will now be used to help research the rare condition and help any other children that are in the same situation as Zac.
The CAR-T therapy was paid for last month and the family had received the visas needed to get them to America, but Zac has been recovering from an infection which prevented him from travelling earlier.
The rest of the family will be travelling separately, depending on when visas are issued. The treatment uses cells from Zac’s own immune system to help fight the cancer.
The cells are genetically engineered to recognise the specific protein on tumour cells, killing the cancer in the body.
The treatment is not currently available on the NHS, but is having huge success in America.
Although the initial online £500,000 target has been reached, family and friends are also continuing to raise funds to cover other medical expenses and eight return trips to the US for follow-up appointments, accommodation for each bone marrow biopsy, day and night feeds, and out-patient medication.
