Jay’s Journey
Little Jay Shetty’s arrival into the world was an eventful one. He was born via emergency c-section and required resuscitation. After an initial transfer to the NICU and a high dependency ward, Jay fought hard, and after 10 days, he was finally breathing on his own.
Three weeks after he was born, the day arrived for Jay to go home. Before leaving, doctors broke the news that there was a high chance Jay had cerebral palsy. While it was a devastating blow, Raj and Shilpa were happy to take their son home and settle into family life.
Watch the interview with the Shetty family on ITV News.
Discovering Cord Blood Banking and Clinical Trials
As Jay grew, the family embarked on a life of travel to access various therapies to help him live as independently as possible. During this time, Shilpa heard about pioneering studies being conducted at Duke University and investigated the possibilities associated with cord blood banking.
The family decided they would save the baby’s cord blood should they choose to have another child. Eventually, Shilpa became pregnant again and delivered Kairav, a healthy baby boy. His cord blood was collected and safely stored with Cells4Life.
The Duke University Trial
In 2017, Jay had the opportunity to take part in a phase 1 clinical trial at Duke University using sibling cord blood as a potential treatment for cerebral palsy. Shilpa applied, and Jay was accepted to be part of the trial.
Fundraising and Support
To participate in the trial and continue his interim therapies, the Shetty family needed to raise £105,000. After hearing about their story in the Wimbledon Gazette, Cells4Life decided to help the family fundraise for Jay’s journey to Duke.
We supported the family not only with their fundraising efforts but also by using our social media presence to raise awareness of cerebral palsy, cord blood banking, and their campaign. Jay continues to travel the world to access dedicated therapies, including trips to Poland for rehabilitation therapy and daily physiotherapy sessions.
