Dad who sought Scots-Italian bone marrow transplant ‘overwhelmed’ by response

Gennaro Rapinese with wife Joanna and kids Mia, seven, Stella, six, and two-year-old Nicholas

Gennaro Rapinese, whose father Nick is Italian, can trace his great grandparents on his mother’s side back to Scotland, with one of them from Dalkeith in Midlothian.

The 39-year-old, who has a rare form of leukaemia, has been given the news that it is in remission, which means he if fit enough to have a bone marrow transplant if a suitable donor is found.

Since The Scotsman broke the story last month, around 80 Scots-Italians have been in touch on the G’s army Facebook page offering to help Mr Rapinese, who needs to trace a donor with a similar racial and ethnic heritage, as bone marrow is based on genetics not blood type.

He said: “We have been absolutely overwhelmed by the support we have received in Scotland. The most important thing is this is changing awareness about the donation process and saving many lives in the process. From the bottom of our hearts, we would like to thank the people of Scotland for their support.”

Mr Rapinese, who lives in the Australian city of Perth, was first diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML) when a routine blood test revealed leukaemic blasts in his blood cells. He underwent months of gruelling chemotherapy and went into remission at the start of 2016, only for the cancer to return in February this year.

Mr Rapinese, whose wife Joanne gave birth to Nicolas, aged two, when he was in remission, has so far found no-one in Australia who is the right match, including his three sisters. He also has two daughters Mia, aged seven, and six-year-old Stella. Mrs Rapinese spoke of the impact Gennaro’s illness has had on the family.

She said: “Through all this craziness, we have really tried to keep everything as normal as possible for the kids. We are glad that they are at an age where they don’t completely understand the seriousness of it all.

“It has been difficult at times trying to juggle everything, trying to keep positive, trying to put on a front and not upset or worry the kids. They obviously hear and see things and have their ideas. We just don’t think they need to know everything as they are too little to have any kind of stress. We have been absolutely blown away by the support we have received. We can’t even put into words how we feel and how much it really means to us.”

To help, visit www.nhsbt.nhs.uk/british-bone-marrow-registry/how-can-i-help/.