Welsh rugby player Ethan Davies issues urgent plea for donor after rare cancer diagnosis

A former Wales Under-20s international rugby player has issued an urgent plea for a donor after being diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.

Ethan Davies, aged 28, has been diagnosed with Hepatosplenic T cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma, a "very rare" form of blood cancer for which he requires a stem cell transplant.

Davies, who represented Wales on the Sevens World Series circuit between 2015 and 2020, said: "For those that don't already know, I have been diagnosed with Hepatosplenic T cell Lymphoma. It's a very rare form of cancer that is affecting my liver and spleen.

"To beat this I'm going to need a stem cell transplant and for that to happen I need to find a donor. So the more people I can reach with this, the better chance I have of finding a match. Not only that, if you aren't a match for me you could be for someone else and save their life.

"Initially I had no intentions of posting anything on social media about this but after thinking things over it makes more sense to do so. The more people that sign up, the more matches they will find for others as well.

"Even if one person finds a match from me doing this it will have made a difference. It's easy to join the donor list, you simply have to sign up and return a mouth swab that is sent to you in the post.

"If you are able to get tested, my family and I will be forever grateful. Tough few months ahead."

'He knows not his own strength'

Davies, who represented Wales at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, added: "He knows not his own strength, who hath not met adversity."

In February, Davies was treated for what was assumed to be a viral infection after it was discovered there was a deficiency of platelets in his blood. Medication returned levels to normal and it was believed all was well.

But the low count returned in June and Davies was also experiencing a sore stomach. The medication failed to work and in July he went to A&E, where a CT scan revealed that his spleen was twice its normal size. Bone marrow and blood tests later led to his cancer diagnosis.

Davies has started chemotherapy and will need a further course later this year, as well as a stem cell transplant - but nobody in his family is a match.

Blood cancer charity DKMS said Davies now "urgently needs to find a matching blood stem cell donor".