A sister from Corsham has renewed her appeal for bone marrow donors in an attempt to find a match for her seriously ill brother after his latest transplant failed.

Josh Whiting, 18, of Corsham, was diagnosed with the blood condition aplastic anaemia, which means his bone marrow doesn’t produce enough new cells.

Five weeks ago his family thought a successful bone marrow transplant had been carried out but were told just before New Year’s Day that it had failed.

Doctors are hoping to try again with the existing donor but in case that fails again, sister Lucie Whiting, 23, is appealing for other donors to come forward to help find a match.

She said: “We had a lovely Christmas but then we got the bad news, which came as a shock.

“We’re staying positive and taking each day as it comes.”

Miss Whiting said the condition resulted from medication her brother was taking to deal with a liver problem he suffered in February.

But despite Josh undergoing various treatments to help cure the condition, Miss Whiting says the only option left now is a bone marrow transplant.

Searches on the NHS Blood and Transplant database have so far not been able to find a match.

As a result, Miss Whiting has arranged for a blood donor session to take place at Cotswold Airport, Kemble, this week.

Miss Whiting, who works for airport-based JB Global, said: “You never think something like this will happen to people you know or love, so this has come as such a shock.”

Anyone wishing to donate can contact the NHS Blood and Transplant Service on 0300 123 2323 or visit www.nhsbt.nhs.uk for more information.