Charity, African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust
Daniel de-Gale
Since Winning the EMMA Award
Daniel de-Gale and his parents formed the African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust. After winning their Emmys in May 1999, they received Doreene Carney’s donated stem cells, and he returned to school 6 months later. He was able to live a happy life for several years and went on to study sports therapy at university.
However, in 2003, Daniel faced a setback in his health journey as he relapsed for a 3rd time and had to undergo further treatment. As a result, he took various medications and required 3-5 units of blood on a weekly basis, which led to severe iron overload.
This led to him having to administer Desferal injections 6 days a week to remove the iron from his blood. Despite the challenges, he persevered and maintained a positive attitude while enjoying life with family and friends.
Although Daniel had beaten cancer again, his organs began to bear the impact of the various treatments he received over the years. On 8th October 2008, Daniel sadly died from multiple organ failure due to severe health complications.
He made a major difference in the world during his short life, and his legacy continues. The African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust is still committed to giving hope and gifting life to those in need of an organ, bone marrow or blood. Daniel’s mother, Beverley de-Gale, received her OBE in June 2011, and his father, Orin Lewis, received his OBE in January 2012.
Background (Before 1999)
At 6 years old, Daniel De-Gale was diagnosed with leukaemia in 1993, and at the end of March 1995, his parents, Beverley De-Gale and Orin Lewis, were told that Daniel was leukaemia-free.
However, 9 months later, the blood cancer returned, which led to Daniel’s relapse. His parents were told that his best chance of survival would be to receive healthy, donated stem cells from a donor. As stem cells have racially specific characteristics, the donor had to be from the black or mixed-race population.
With only 550 registered donors, there was a 1 in 250,000 chance of finding a matching donor for Daniel. His parents identified the need for an organisation to raise awareness and increase the number of donors. As a result, they co-founded the African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust in 1996.
In 1999, Daniel became the first black person in the UK to receive a life-saving bone marrow transplant from an unrelated donor named Doreene Carney. She was a born-again Christian from Detroit, Michigan, who listened to a presentation at her place of work, the US Postal Service, and immediately decided to join the US register.
