Gemma D'Arcy
Encyclopedia
Gemma Donna Louise D'Arcy was born in Cumbria
in November 1983. She was briefly famous in Britain due to suffering chronic myeloid leukaemia, extremely rare in children and hypothesised to have been caused by her family living in proximity to the Sellafield
nuclear power plant.
She died in September 1990 after three bone marrow transplant
s, aged six years and ten months. Her life was the subject of an ITV docu-drama Fighting for Gemma in 1993, detailing her family's attempts to bring a criminal case against BNFL
for damages relating to her illness.
Her mother Susan later wrote a book, Still Fighting For Gemma in which she voiced her criticisms of British Nuclear Fuels and the nuclear industry in general.
Cumbria
Cumbria , is a non-metropolitan county in North West England. The county and Cumbria County Council, its local authority, came into existence in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972. Cumbria's largest settlement and county town is Carlisle. It consists of six districts, and in...
in November 1983. She was briefly famous in Britain due to suffering chronic myeloid leukaemia, extremely rare in children and hypothesised to have been caused by her family living in proximity to the Sellafield
Sellafield
Sellafield is a nuclear reprocessing site, close to the village of Seascale on the coast of the Irish Sea in Cumbria, England. The site is served by Sellafield railway station. Sellafield is an off-shoot from the original nuclear reactor site at Windscale which is currently undergoing...
nuclear power plant.
She died in September 1990 after three bone marrow transplant
Bone marrow transplant
Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the transplantation of multipotent hematopoietic stem cell or blood, usually derived from bone marrow, peripheral blood stem cells, or umbilical cord blood...
s, aged six years and ten months. Her life was the subject of an ITV docu-drama Fighting for Gemma in 1993, detailing her family's attempts to bring a criminal case against BNFL
BNFL
British Nuclear Fuels Limited was a nuclear energy and fuels company owned by the UK Government. It was a former manufacturer and transporter of nuclear fuel , ran reactors, generated and sold electricity, reprocessed and managed spent fuel , and decommissioned nuclear plants and other similar...
for damages relating to her illness.
Her mother Susan later wrote a book, Still Fighting For Gemma in which she voiced her criticisms of British Nuclear Fuels and the nuclear industry in general.