Twelve-year-old Marlon Jupiter, whose battle with an aggressive form of blood cancer prompted a public fundraising appeal for urgent overseas treatment, has died before the full amount needed for his bone marrow transplant could be raised.
His death was confirmed by his sister, Lashana Jupiter, in a Facebook post.
“With a heavy heart, I must say my brother passed away,” she wrote.
Marlon had been a patient at the Georgetown Public Hospital after being diagnosed with T-Lymphoblastic Lymphoma, a rare and life-threatening blood cancer.
Doctors had advised that his best chance of survival was an urgent bone marrow transplant in Brazil, since the procedure is not available in Guyana. The treatment was estimated to cost US$35,000, or approximately GYD$7.3 million.
In recent weeks, US-based medical charity Saving Hands Emergency Aid (SHEA) has been helping to raise awareness about Marlon’s case and mobilise financial support for his travel and treatment overseas.
A GoFundMe campaign was launched in his name, and his story was widely shared on social media as appeals were made to the public to help save his life.
