Bury St Edmunds girl who beat leukaemia twice is ready for new chapter and new wheels

A girl from Bury St Edmunds is to receive a new, lighter wheelchair which will transform her life and allow her to be fully independent for the first time.

Jasmi Cooke, 10, has defeated leukaemia twice, but can no longer walk after sustaining serious hip joint damage as a side effect of her treatment.

Having bravely battled her way through years of illness, Jasmi is currently reliant on her mother to help with her wheelchair, as she doesn’t have enough strength herself.

All that is about to change however, thanks to the fund-raising efforts of the doctors who treated her on the paediatrics ward.

Dr Rachel Furley, who also uses a wheelchair, and Dr Katherine Piccinelli have been working together to raise funds so that Jasmi can have a new, ultra-lightweight wheelchair.

This will enable her to travel around to meet friends and start living a more independent life as she grows up.

Dr Furley, who set up a Go Fund Me page for Jasmi on Monday, has already seen thousands of pounds roll in and has now ordered her a new wheelchair.

Dr Piccinelli will be running three half-marathons in March to raise more money for Jasmi so that she can have off road tyres and a Tri Ride attachment to help power the wheelchair.

Rowena Cooke, Jasmi’s mum, said: “She’s desperate to gain her independence and go out with her friends. We’re overwhelmed by the generosity of people and the efforts of her doctors.”

Jasmi’s road has been a long one since she was first diagnosed at the age of four.

Efforts to find a matching blood stem cell donor involved a special appeal by singer Ed Sheeran on her behalf. The number of donors subsequently spiked and a match was found for Jasmi, but after overcoming leukaemia once again, she then started experiencing pain in her legs.

She was soon diagnosed with a common side effect of her leukaemia treatment, called avascular necrosis.

Jasmi’s hip joints had been badly damaged during her fight against the illness and she was given the heart-breaking news that she would no longer be able to walk.

Finally though, after overcoming so much, she can begin to look forward to a bright, independent future which has been made possible by the kindness of her doctors.

To donate, visit https://www.gofundme.com/f/wheels-for-jasmi