An Angus toddler who suffers from cerebral palsy is “improving all the time” after travelling to Germany for stem cell treatment six months ago.
Rhys Allan (3) has been the focus for a major community fund-raising effort that has brought in tens of thousands of pounds to help make his life easier.
He went to Germany last autumn to have stem cell treatment and dad Gary said he and wife Penny are seeing small differences in Rhys every day.
The treatment at the Xcell Centre in Dusseldorf involved isolating stem cells from bone marrow taken from Rhys’s hip and injecting them via a lumbar puncture.
Stem cells act as a repair system for the body and help renew specialised cells as well as maintaining the replacement of regenerative tissue including skin and blood. They can also be grown artificially as specialised cells and used to replace damaged tissue.
The family were told it could take up to six months for the effects of the treatment, backed up with physiotherapy, to become evident but they say improvements were noticeable in Rhys around a month afterwards.
“He’s doing really well and his balance is a lot better,” said Gary. “We’ve also noticed a difference in his arms, which are a lot looser than they were and easier for him to move.
“He also seems to be a lot more alert and it’s getting better all the time. His movement generally is a lot better and he’s getting around the house now trying to do the ‘commando crawl’ on his elbows. Eating is also becoming easier for him.
“We were told that it could take anything up to six months to see improvement and if we continue to work with him we’ll continue to see improvements all the time.”
Rhys was born with cerebral palsy and as a result cannot walk, use his hands or talk, but according to family and friends he is “a very bright boy” and understands everything around him.
There is no treatment available for his condition in the UK, but the clinic in Germany has offered hope to Gary and Penny. Nearly 70% of patients treated this way see some improvement, sometimes within days, bringing with it a significant improvement to quality of life.
Rhys still regularly attends the Scottish Centre for Children with Motor Impairments, based at the Craighalbert Centre in Cumbernauld, and undergoes physiotherapy with a private London-based therapist.
“The main thing now is to keep up with the physio,” said Gary. “To start with we did worry about whether it was going to do anything for him and, although we’re seeing small changes, it’s people who don’t see him very often who notice the difference.”
Gary and Penny are continuing to raise funds for Rhys’s ongoing care and their next big event will be a 144-mile cycle from Montrose to the base of Ben Nevis before a climb up the mountain.