The family of a baby who received a life-saving blood transfusion while still in the womb have expressed their gratitude to the donors whose specialist blood made the rare procedure possible. Arthur Ransom, one of the youngest patients in the UK to undergo such a transfusion, was just 16 weeks gestation and the size of an avocado when the treatment was delivered.
The transfusion became necessary after Arthur contracted parvovirus, commonly known as slapped cheek syndrome, while in the womb. The infection caused severe anaemia, leading to a dangerous buildup of fluid around his heart, which resulted in heart failure. The intrauterine transfusion at St George’s Hospital in London in 2024 delivered oxygen to his body, allowing the fluid to be reabsorbed and reducing the strain on his heart.
Arthur was born in January 2025 and is now thriving, according to his mother, Maisie Ransom, a primary school teacher from Cranleigh, Surrey. “The experience was absolutely terrifying,” she said. “He was so small the doctors were working within millimetres. Without that blood he would not have made it – his organs were failing, his heart was completely enveloped in fluid and it was struggling to pump.”
NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) identified eight donors whose blood has been used most frequently for intrauterine transfusions. Donors must be men with type O blood that is Kell negative and negative for cytomegalovirus. Among them is Paul Bickley, 45, from Richmond, who said, “Hearing my blood was used in this way almost made me cry, to think a very small act of kindness could have such a massive impact.”
Another donor, David Smith, 64, from Westminster, has donated more than 80 times. Dr Luci Etheridge, consultant paediatrician at St George’s, stated: “For babies like Arthur, a blood transfusion while still in the womb can mean the difference between life and loss.”
