Baby brother’s gift to Michael
Nov 16 2008 by Andrew Dagnell, Wales On Sunday

TINY toddler Rhys Emms has given his big brother Michael the gift of life after groundbreaking stem cell research on the other side of the world.

Brave Michael, 21, was told he would be wheelchair-bound and had just years to live when he became one of the youngest people in the world to be diagnosed with crippling motor neurone disease.

But now the brothers’ proud father Julian has revealed Michael is starting to make a miraculous recovery after stem cells from Rhys’ umbilical cord were used to stop his son’s muscles from wasting away.

Julian, 43, said: “We’ve been given a light at the end of the tunnel. Through scientific advances and his own sheer determination and hard work, Michael has been able to get on the road to recovery.”

Just over a year ago, Michael, of Caerwent, near Newport, was an active young man playing football and working at a DIY warehouse.

But out of nowhere, he started feeling an excruciating pain spread through his body – and specialist doctors delivered the tragic news he was suffering from the degenerative disease.

“We had consultants and professors absolutely baffled by the fact he had this disease,” Julian said. “They didn’t know how it was possible and said they had never heard of it before in such a young man.

“They did a test on our genes and it came back clear, so there was absolutely no genetic link. There was more than a one-in-a-million chance that this could happen to him.”

The condition, suffered by Cambridge professor Stephen Hawking, breaks down the nerve cells which control muscle activity, and normally only affects people aged over 60.

Victims suffer muscle-wasting, loss of mobility and eventually struggle to speak, swallow and breathe.

And without stem cell treatment Michael, who lives with his mum Teresa, 42, was likely to have died by March this year.

The treatment wasn’t easy to arrange, because it has yet to be approved in the UK as doctors are split on its effectiveness at repairing sufferers’ damaged cells and tissues.

It has also been condemned by pro-life campaigners and church groups as it often involves harvesting cells from human embryos.

But while she was pregnant with Rhys, Julian’s partner Joanna Stanley read on the internet the treatment was proving successful in North America, Belize and China where it is regularly used to treat motor neurone patients.

Eventually, Julian managed to track down a specialist in Shenyang, in Northeast China, who agreed to perform the revolutionary treatment on Michael in an attempt to curb the spread of the disease.

Doctors then made sure cells from Rhys’ umbilical cord were extracted moments after he was born and then frozen in order to perform the surgery.

Luckily, Rhys’ cells were a perfect match for Michael – and they were flown across the world just months after he was born. Michael and his dad then flew out to China for a month at the end of last year, and the treatment began. As well as having the cells injected into the base of his spine, Michael underwent a rigorous daily routine of physio and acupuncture, hoping to reverse the muscle wastage he had suffered.

“We needed it done as soon as possible,” said Julian. “At the time there wasn’t a lot of faith in stem cell treatment, but for us it was the choice of life.

“It was so critical for us to try and do something because he was 21 and had the rest of his life ahead of him. His metabolism was so high, so it affected him worse.”

Julian was told the treatment would cost in the region of £60,000 – a staggering sum, but he was able to raise most of the cash through charitable donations.

And even though it took half a year to notice any change in his condition, amazingly Michael’s muscles started to grow back.

“It paid off because the treatment in China went very well,” Julian said. “He is nothing like what he was before. There has been no deterioration over the last year.

“Over there we didn’t see a marked change. But during the following three to six months there was muscle growth. His shoulder had more definition and the muscle was coming back. He still has to be aided to walk, but he’s not wheelchair-bound anymore.”

For Michael, every day is still a struggle, with improvements taking place gradually. He takes each day as it comes, but takes comfort from the extra special bond he has with his baby brother. “The closeness between Rhys and Michael is unbelievable,” Julian said. “Rhys is really drawn to Michael. Maybe he can sense there’s something special between them.”

While the future remains uncertain, Michael has vowed to beat the condition which has left him virtually housebound.

Julian said: “He can’t do a lot. He doesn’t have the confidence to drive. He relies on people to do stuff for him. But this has provided us with light at the end of the tunnel. The doctors gave him two to five years to live – it was like a death sentence. But he is still here and he hasn’t got any worse. But we will know a lot more in six months.

“At the end of the day, he’s 21 and doesn’t want his life to be taken away from him.”

To donate money to The Michael Emms Fund, e-mail Julian on jemms888@btinternet.com

http://www.walesonline.co.uk:80/news...1466-22266551/