ALMOST 23,000 people have urged the Home Office to reconsider its decision in the case of a dying Weymouth mum. 

As reported in the Echo, May Brown has Acute Myeloid Leukaemia and needs a bone marrow transplant.

Desperate appeals for a donor in the UK have proved fruitless– but there is one woman who is a 10 out of 10 match; May's sister Martha.

Martha lives in Nigeria and has applied for a visa to come to the UK and give her sister a transplant, but this has been refused by the Home Office on the grounds that Martha does not meet 'economic requirements'.

Martha, a teacher, earns 65,000 Naira (£222) per month, which the government says is not sufficient to cover her travel costs. This is despite her sister May agreeing to sponsor her trip to the UK, covering her return flights, accommodation and any living expenses during her short stay.

Mrs Brown, 23, who is married to a former soldier from Weymouth and has a two–year–old daughter, was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia last year.

After receiving four cycles of chemotherapy, May went into remission. However, sadly, nine months later she relapsed, this time more aggressively. Consultants have confirmed May's only chance of survival is to receive a stem cell transplant from a donor with a matching tissue type as hers. Despite letters from hospital consultants confirming Martha's status as the only available matching donor for the urgent stem cell transplant, she was refused a visa earlier this month. Additional paperwork submitted included confirmation that Martha's trip was to be funded entirely by her sister, May.

May, who has been in hospital for the last three months, said: "My sister Martha has two children in Nigeria who will be looked after by our Grandmother during her visit to the UK. She has no desire to re-locate here. She is only visiting to help save my life, the life of her sister.

"I was elated when I received the news Martha was a 10 out of 10 match. But when I received notification her visa was rejected I felt distraught and helpless. My two year old daughter Selina needs me. To know my life isn't important to those who have the power to help me is deeply upsetting.

"My life can be saved if my sister is granted to enter the UK to donate her stem cells. This is a six hour journey which will help save my life. I am begging for the UK Home Office to review their decision and grant my sister admission to the UK."

After hearing May's story, the African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust has set up a petition to urge the government to change its mind.

So far around 23,000 people have signed.

A Home Office spokesman said they can't comment on idividul cases but added that they are 'sensitive to cases with compassionate circumstances but all visa applications must be assessed against immigration rules. The onus is on the individual to provide the necessary supporting evidence to prove they meet the requirements.'

Several readers have said they are writing to MP for South Dorset Richard Drax. Mr Drax has been contacted for a comment. 

You can sign the petition at change.org/o/aclt_african_caribbean_leukaemia_trust