MOD Police Officer's Daughter Recovering In Hospital After Transplant

The daughter of a Ministry of Defence (MOD) police officer is recovering in hospital after undergoing a stem cell transplant.

Eight-year-old Evie Hodgson was diagnosed with a life-threatening blood condition last year and an appeal for donors was launched after her first donor cancelled without explanation.

Evie has a rare blood disorder called aplastic anaemia - a disease in which the body fails to produce enough blood cells.

On 15 January, Evie was finally able to have her stem cell transplant to treat the condition and is recovering at the Great North Children’s Hospital in Newcastle.

Her mother Tina Hodgson, who is a MOD police officer at RAF Fylingdales, said they're "not out of the woods yet".

"Evie's doing really, really well considering what her little body has been through - she is just coming out of it remarkably, really.

"It can take about three to four weeks to engraft, so what that means is that Evie's body has accepted her new donor stem cells, her bone marrow then starts producing its own stem cells and that's an indication that it has been successful. 

"So although it's brilliant the transplant has gone ahead, we're still very much not out the woods yet because there is a chance that it could fail.

"We've just got to keep everything crossed but it's just a waiting game, which is not a nice position to be in."

The family remains cautiously optimistic and is already planning a special occasion for Evie later in the year.

"She loves singing, she loves performing and she was desperate to go to a West End show," Ms Hodgson added.

"She's desperate to go to the Savoy [Hotel]because she has been watching that on TV, so we think as a family, if everything goes ok and obviously COVID is ok, we're kind of thinking we can aim for a really good trip to London in the summer."

Updates on Evie's recovery can be seen on the Facebook page: Evie Needs a Hero.