A 23-year-old
Nigerian woman has launched an appeal to the Home Office/UK Visa &
Immigration to allow for her sister to visit the UK from Nigeria for a
lifesaving stem
cell (bone marrow) transplant.
May Brown
(pictured) is currently undergoing Leukaemia treatment at King’s College
Hospital in London and is said to be distraught by the decision. She is now
pleading with authorities to allow her sister entry to ‘save my life...
Ms Brown, who
is married to a former British soldier was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid
Leukaemia last year. Consultants have confirmed her only chance of survival is
to receive a stem cell transplant from a donor with a matching tissue type as
hers.
The patient’s
sister Martha, who resides in Nigeria, is a perfect match. However, she was
denied entry in to the UK as she did not meet the economic requirements laid
out by the Home Office. Her monthly earnings of 65,000 Naira (£222) per month
suggest she doesn't have sufficient funds available to cover her travel costs.
The letter
from UK Visas & Immigration state "I am not satisfied that you are a genuine
visitor and will leave the UK at the end of your visit or that you have
sufficient funds available to cover your costs whilst in the UK without working
or accessing public funds."
Additional
paperwork submitted included confirmation that Martha's trip was to be funded
entirely by her sister. However, Ms Brown’s sponsorship of her sister’s entire
expenses have also been rejected by officials, who fear Martha will not return
back to Nigeria – despite having a family of her own there.
"My
sister Martha has two children in
Nigeria who will be looked after by our Grandmother during her visit to the UK.
She has no desire to re-locate here. She is only visiting to help save my life,
the life of her sister." said May, who has been in hospital for the last three
months.
"To know
my life isn’t important to those who have the power to help me is deeply
upsetting. My life can be saved if my sister is granted to enter the UK to
donate her stem cells. This is a six-hour journey which will help save my
life." she added.
More than
1,500 people have now signed the petition, launched by the blood cancer charity
African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust (ACLT), asking the Home Office to reverse the
decision.
Follow Solenzo Blog on
0 Comments