'I had a running rash and 111 said get to A&E or we'll send an ambulance'

A 31-year-old man who found a dark red rash on his legs didn't think anything of it as he finished a Parkrun. Daniel Chapman put cream on his leg, but the rash spread and over the next few days and he began to develop more worrying symptoms - including fatigue, persistent bleeding after a dental appointment, and dried blood on his pillow.

A week on and after Googling his symptoms - “like millennials do” - Daniel, from Holbeach, in Lincolnshire, visited the doctor’s surgery for a blood test. “Luckily I was working from home and got a message from 111,” he said. “They said that after the blood test analysis my platelet count was incredibly low.

“If I didn’t answer my phone they would send an ambulance and I needed to get to Boston A&E as soon as possible.”

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A healthy adult typically has between 150,000 to 450,000 platelets per microlitre of blood. Daniel’s count was at 14 and only rose slightly after treatment at the hospital. “I was on a transfusion and my temperature was spiking to 42 degrees,” he said. “I had an MRI scan and was tested for lung capacity and, as my nan said, I got my money’s worth.”

Daniel was diagnosed with aplastic anaemia, a rare and potentially fatal condition in which the bone marrow fails to produce enough blood cells. He now requires regular platelet transfusions and has had both a PICC line and a Hickman line inserted to deliver medication and treatment directly into his bloodstream.

The only potential cure is a stem cell transplant, and he is relying on a donor from the Anthony Nolan register. “It has been a lot. It is not a smoking induced illness, I am not overweight, someone has not run me over,” Daniel says. “It is just a really bad play on the roulette of life but how can I be angry at fate?”

Despite facing a serious diagnosis, Daniel’s sense of humour has played a large part in helping him to deal with occasional ‘wobbles’ during an ongoing stay on the transplant ward. Support from friends and family, including regular hospital visits from his parents, brother and his beloved nan also helped to lift his spirits.

Determined to raise awareness, Daniel has now launched a fundraising campaign for Anthony Nolan, the charity that runs the UK's stem cell donor register. “Anthony Nolan has been fantastic and the fundraising team got in touch with me,” Daniel said. “People I haven't heard from for ages are joining the Anthony Nolan register. I am not a good dweller and I want to save my energy until I get a donor.”

Daniel, who works as an advisor in local government, had also recently secured a place in the public ballot for the London Marathon, and despite his current condition, remains hopeful that he’ll be able to take on the challenge next year. “As a fairly competitive runner, I’m always trying to beat my times or outrun other runners,” he said. “But this is something that I can’t leave, outpace or run away from. It’s with me.”

If you’re aged 16 to 30, you can join the stem cell register, so that someone like Daniel can have a second chance at life: www.anthonynolan.org/DonateforDan