The big airport mistake that almost cost a six-year-old Queensland boy his life: “I just don’t understand how something like this can happen”
- Six-year-old Mateoh Eggleton needs a bone marrow transplant
- The donor was found in the USA.
- The transplant remained on asphalt in the US.
A six-year-old Australian boy with a genetic disorder was at risk of losing his life after his bone marrow transplant was mistakenly left on the tarmac at a US airport.
Mateoh Eggleton was diagnosed with chronic granulomatous disease in 2019, meaning his white blood cells were unable to fight off certain types of bacteria.
The little boy underwent a successful transplant for the disease, but treatment resulted in him being diagnosed with a rare but more serious condition known as hemolytic uremic syndrome, which can lead to kidney failure.
His mother, Shalyn Eggleton, tried desperately to find a match for a bone marrow transplant for Mateoh and eventually found a donor in the US.
The transplant was supposed to be loaded onto a plane leaving the US for Brisbane, but staff at Queensland Children’s Hospital told Ms Eggleton it never arrived.
Shalyn Eggleton is pictured with her son Mateoh. Mateoh requires an urgent bone marrow transplant. The transplant was mistakenly left on a track in the US.
“We haven’t received any reason why (this happened), nothing else,” he told The Today Show on Thursday morning.
‘I’m going to be doing all that research myself because it’s unacceptable. He has fought for three and a half years for his life and for someone to be so negligent and naive when it comes to something like this.
‘This is what you’ve been waiting for and someone just left it behind.’
The Australian Bone Marrow Donor Registry (ABMDR) is responsible for organizing and transporting bone marrow and blood stem cell donations for patients requiring transplantation in Australia.
A Queensland Children’s Hospital spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia that the transplant is now in transit to Australia.
“Mateoh has been a long-term patient at Queensland Children’s Hospital and his care team understands and shares the family’s disappointment at this unforeseen delay in the delivery of his donor cells,” they said.
‘Mateoh’s donor cells are currently in transit to Australia and their delayed arrival will not negatively affect Mateoh’s care.
“Throughout, our priority has been to ensure that the donation remains viable so that Mateoh’s bone marrow transplant can be performed safely.”
The mother said the transplant was Mateoh’s last chance, as the six-year-old boy previously underwent grueling chemotherapy and blood transfusions to keep him alive.
The family had found a previous match in Britain, but decided to reject the transplant, leaving Mateoh and his mother with no options.
The six-year-old boy had undergone six weeks of treatment in preparation for the transplant which has now been delayed.
The mother said the transplant was Mateoh’s last chance, as the six-year-old boy previously underwent grueling chemotherapy and blood transfusions to keep him alive.
Testing will also need to be completed to see if the transplant is still viable, further prolonging the process and putting Mateoh at greater risk.
Ms Eggleton said Mateoh had undergone nine different types of treatment in the past 18 months.
“Every day is hospital or medication, so we are constantly in the hospital,” he said.
“I just don’t understand how something like this could happen.”
She said Mateoh was to start conditioning for the transplant next Tuesday.
Mrs Eggleton said it was “hell” to watch her son fight.
“You can’t imagine your child being sick, not for three and a half years going through all this, trying transplants and adult chemotherapy drugs,” she said.
‘In this world we live in, it’s like nothing works with him, it’s frustrating.
You have to put up with it, it’s part of being a mother.
Ms Eggleton said it was “hell” to watch her son struggle, with daily hospital visits and medication.
