FRESH appeal is under way to help a little girl with cerebral palsy and epilepsy, whose condition has improved after four months of pioneering stem cell treatment in China.
Nine-year-old Shonia Tahiliani, who lives in Bournemouth, had to go abroad for the therapy because it is not yet available in the UK. Now she is home again, her parents, Kishor and Priti, want to raise funds for further treatment later in the year.
They have launched an email campaign, which they hope will reach 50,000 people around the world, asking each recipient to donate at least £1.
"We are circulating it everywhere. We aim to raise £20,000 and maybe we will see some results in a month's time," said Mr Tahiliani.
Their immediate aim is to take Shonia back to China for another two months, but ultimately, they want to improve their daughter's life and give her some degree of independence.
Shonia was deprived of oxygen at birth and suffered brain damage that left her unable to walk, talk or feed herself. She was unable to sit unaided, and her leg muscles were so tight that she could not place her feet flat on the floor.
Until recently, cerebral palsy has been regarded as untreatable, but Mr Tahiliani carried out his own research on the internet and discovered that some people with brain damage were improving through stem cell injections.
Last year, the family launched an appeal through the Daily Echo to raise funds to take Shonia to the Tiantan Puhua Stem Cell Centre in the Chinese capital of Beijing.
Thanks to a generous donation from the Hermitage Hotel, she was able to have six injections at the centre between June and September, using stem cells grown from her own bone marrow. Between treatments, she also had physiotherapy and speech therapy and, after leaving China, she received intensive physiotherapy in India.
Shonia is now 8cm taller, 3k heavier, and can sit unaided. She can stand with very little support and place her feet flat on the ground, raising hopes that she will walk one day.
She has gained control over her neck, hands, fingers and eye movements. She can follow instructions; is toilet trained; has started trying to feed herself; and is attempting to talk. Most strikingly, she seems happier and more relaxed.
"Her sleep has improved so much," said Mrs Tahiliani. "Before, every little noise would wake her. Now she can sleep like a baby. We've reduced her epilepsy medication. She's only had one seizure in the last eight months."
Shonia's website is helpshoniafight.org. Donations can be made via Paypal using a credit or debit card, or at NatWest bank in Old Christchurch Road, Bournemouth. The account name is Vaishnavi Tahiliani and the account number 28189922.
The Banteer Drama Group from Ireland will be staging the comedy Dry Rot at Corpus Christi Parish Centre, Parkwood Road, Boscombe, Bournemouth, at 8pm on Saturday March 8 in aid of Shonia.
FRESH appeal is under way to help a little girl with cerebral palsy and epilepsy, whose condition has improved after four months of pioneering stem cell treatment in China.
