Hundreds have offered to donate bone marrow to an 18-month-old boy named Alex in desperate need, reports Ansa.
His parents had launched an appeal online and organized events across Italy in order to find a match.
“I put myself in the shoes of the little boy and felt the need to take on this responsibility,” said Costanza, a 22-year-old university student lined up with about one hundred others in Milan to sign up to donate bone marrow. About 500 people took part in the event held by the ADMO bone marrow donors association between Wednesday and Thursday. Regional councillor and volunteer for the association Mirko Antonioli said that the participation was “extraordinary’ and that “the number of participants increased five-fold compared with the previous year.” Alex, who was born in London to Italian parents, has a rare genetic disorder and needs a transplant to survive but no match has been found yet on international donor registries.