'You wouldn't know to look at him that he's ill'

Mason is like most five-year-old boys, according to his mother Emily.

He loves dance, gymnastics, doing arts and crafts, being on his scooter, supporting Arsenal, playing dress-up and baking.

But Mason, who lives in Islington, north London, needs to find a potentially life-saving 10/10 matching stem cell donor to treat his severe congenital neutropenia, a rare blood disorder.

"I just want him to have a normal life – this has always been his normal, but all the hospital visits, surgeries, tests, cannulations and injections shouldn't be his normal," says Emily.

Mason's condition means he is at risk from life-threatening bacterial infections and an increased risk of leukaemia and other cancers.

The stem cell transplant will replace damaged or diseased bone marrow with healthy stem cells, which will then create new blood cells, reduce his symptoms and lessen the risk of leukaemia developing.

His dual Caribbean (Bajan/St Lucian) and British heritage means finding a matching donor is an even greater challenge. None of his family are a match.

People from UK ethnic minority heritages are under-represented on the stem cell donor register, and people from such backgrounds often face a much longer wait to find a matching donor.

Mason is one of approximately 2,000 people in the UK who are waiting for a stem cell transplant.

Emily says: "Mason knows that he needs 'magic medicine' and that it will come from someone else.

"He's very resilient and just gets on with it – even though he's been through so much and I wouldn't be able to cope with half of what he has gone through.

"But we've talked to him about sharing his story, to help him and other people find a match, and he's said yes, he wants to help."

"To look at him right now, you wouldn't know he is ill and needs a transplant," she added.

On Sunday Mason's family and friends, led by Emily, held a stem cell donor registration event to encourage more people to sign up as potential stem cell donors.

The process is described as "quick and easy, and can be completed with a simple cheek swab".

Blood cancer charity DKMS helped organise the donor registration event at a primary school in Islington.

The charity's spokesperson, Deborah Hyde, says: "By registering as a donor, you could give hope not just to Mason, but countless others from all backgrounds, who are relying on the stem cell register for a second chance at life.

"Signing up is a quick and easy process involving some painless mouth swabs: if you are aged 17 to 55 and in general good health, you're eligible to join the register with DKMS.

"And if you were then matched with someone needing a transplant, in nine out of ten cases donating is a simple, outpatient process similar to donating blood platelets."

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