THE parents of a little boy with an aggressive form of leukaemia have been told they have only three months to find their son a life-saving blood stem cell transplant.

Oscar Saxelby-Lee, who has only just turned five, has already endured four weeks of intensive chemotherapy and more than 20 blood transfusions but doctors say his illness is now so aggressive that a donor must be found – and fast.

His parents, Olivia Saxelby and Jamie Lee, have launched a desperate appeal for someone to save him.

They want as many people as possible to sign up to a blood stem cell donor register as part of a campaign called Hand in Hand for Oscar – while staff at Oscar's primary school have vowed to help by hosting a special screening event that is open to all.

Olivia said: "They say everything can change in a blink of an eye, that undoubtedly is a quote so very true."

She described being given the 'heartbreaking news' that Oscar will need a stem cell transplant by doctors at Birmingham Children's Hospital, saying: "We broke completely. We shed tear after tear, we fell into each other's arms damaged and inconsolable.

"We felt like we could not see light at the end of the tunnel, but when looking at Oscar's cheeky smile, bravery and determination, we managed to pull our strength together again.

"From that moment of fear and confusion, we as a family became stronger than ever. Oscar reminded us how to fight again and just how courageous he is.

"Not once has he shown weakness, nor has he ceased to amaze us throughout the most difficult times and that to us is a true warrior."

She added: "Oscar is a fun, loving, energetic five-year-old boy who deserves to live to the full alongside the other troopers fighting such horrific diseases. Not only does he need to enjoy a normal life a child should live, he now needs someone else to save him."

Oscar and his family, who live in St John's, Worcester, are being supported by staff and parents at Pitmaston Primary School, where Oscar is a pupil.

Headteacher Kate Wilcock said: "Oscar is a really happy little boy. He started school with us in reception last September. He's described by many as a little gentleman and he's a really, really popular member of his class who is really missed."

"He had not had any time off. He was a really healthy, happy boy. It's such a shock.

"He had the last day of the Autumn term off as he didn't feel 100 per cent and then what alerted the family was the bruising that was happening very easily to him.

"They followed that through with the GP and on December 28 he was diagnosed with T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia and he was sent straight to Birmingham Children's Hospital.

"He's been having very intensive chemotherapy but unfortunately, four weeks later, they've been told that he needs a stem cell transplant. The leukaemia is too aggressive to be treated with just chemotherapy."

She added: "We feel shock and sadness for his family. As a headteacher, you go through this feeling of utter helplessness to what can we do to support this family and this little boy.

"Though we've set up a fundraising page, we all all know the crucial thing is we find Oscar a donor.

"What I want to do at school is get as many people as we can to come to a DKMS blood stem cell donor registration event.

"We will open up our school, in Malvern Road, for the whole weekend of Saturday, March 2 and Sunday, March 3 from 9am to 3pm. We are asking anyone to come, bring family members and friends - anyone between 17 and 55 years of age and in general good health.

"It's a really simple process. Come into school, fill in the registration forms and we will help you do that. Then give a sample in the form of a mouth swab, which is sent off to see if anyone is eligible or a match.

"This isn't just about Oscar. Someone might be a match for someone else waiting for a transplant too."

Mrs Wilcock added that although you can register online and request a swabbing kit, these can take up to eight weeks to arrive, whereas anyone registering at the school's event can be tested on the spot.

The event will be run by charity DKMS.

To register online, visit: https://www.dkms.org.uk/en/registernow

To support Oscar and his family visit: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/hand-in-handforoscarsaxelby-lee