The three-year-old is halfway through treatment for acute lymphoblastic lymphoma, following her diagnosis in September 2023
The three-year-old is halfway through treatment for acute lymphoblastic lymphoma, following her shock diagnosis in September 2023.
Since starting intensive chemo last year Aria has received five blood transfusions and six platelet transfusions, which mum Gillian says has helped keep her alive.
With husband Gavin she’s now become a blood donor, encouraged members of their families to sign up and taken part in a Northern Ireland Blood Transfusion Service appeal for more people to come forward.
Northern Ireland needs 1,800 donors a week, around one every eight minutes.
Aria has benefited from donations from 11 people and will probably need more, with her treatment set to continue until January 2026.
“She wouldn’t have survived without the transfusions, and the chemo,” says Gillian.
“She couldn’t even sit up on that morning of her first transfusion.
“After it she was sitting up eating an apple. You can see the difference from her being really pale and tired to bouncing about.”
Aria Stevenson
The family noticed last summer that the Derry toddler was losing her appetite and becoming lethargic.
During their regular evening walks, she’d complain that her knees were sore and ask to be carried.
When her lips turned blue their out-of-hours GP service advised Aria’s parents to take her to A&E, where doctors suspected a viral infection.
A few days later when the little girl couldn’t get off the sofa, Gillian took her to their GP, who checked her over and noticed tiny pinprick red dots on her knees.
They were sent straight to Alnagelvin Hospital’s paediatric department where blood tests showed Aria had the rare form of leukemia.
“It was the day of the strike and we were warned the results might take a bit longer, and after three hours a doctor came and put us in a wee room, and asked me to get my husband to come over,” says Gillian.
“Gavin came over and they told us it was acute lymphoblastic lymphoma. The first things I asked were is it terminal and can you treat it?
“They told us the treatment is really good for this type of cancer, but it’s very long.”
The next day Aria was in the Royal Belfast Hospital for Sick Children and a few days later her treatment started.
“I think they told us 95pc of her blood cells were leukaemia,” says Gillian.
While the chemo kills off the cancer cells, it also suppresses Aria’s immune system and her ability to fight infection, which is why the platelet transfusions are so essential.
“Last Christmas she was messing around in the house with her sister and she fell and banged her head, which came up in a lump. The hospital told us to come up and her platelets level was five, so she had to have a platelet transfusion on New Year’s Day.”
Aria is now on daily maintenance chemo at home and monthly clinic treatments.
Gillian says she and Gavin – both teachers – only started to process their daughter’s diagnosis and treatment this summer, and if there is the slightest change in Aria’s health they have to drive straight to Belfast, which also impacts her big sister Isla (8).
“Any time Aria had a temperature we had to go straight to Belfast, so we could all be waking up in the middle of the night and into the car,” she says.
Pacemaker Press 17-12-2024: Sunday World
NI blood transfusion service Christmas feature about giving blood.
Roisin Gorman pictured at the Blood Transfusion service, in Belfast.
Picture By: Arthur Allison/Pacemaker Press
And it’s made them determined to speak out about the importance of blood donation.
“I had given blood when I was younger and then family came along,” says Gillian.
“I said to Gavin we need to be giving blood and paying back. This is something we need to do, and a lot of our family members are fit and healthy, why can’t they do it?
“I don’t think people know how easy it is and how often it’s on.
“It’s a really quick thing to do. It’s a really good thing to do and it’s really necessary.
“We feel so passionate about it and people need to know how much it’s needed,” says Gillian.
The NIBTS is on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter (@givebloodNI), LinkedIn, and Nextdoor. For more information go to www.nibts.org or contact its donation line on 08085 534 653.