A church is Burnt Oak is holding a donor drive to help find a rare stem cell match for a student with Leukaemia.

Lara Casalotti, 24 of Belsize Park, was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia just before Christmas and requires a blood stem cell donation to save her life.

Ms Casalotti’s mixed Thai and Italian heritage makes it extremely difficult to find a suitable donor as tissue types are determined through ancestry.

Burnt Oak Annunciation Church, in Thirleby Road, Edgware is holding a special event this Sunday from 9am to 3pm calling for members of the public to donate blood stem cells.

They hope one of the contributions may be an appropriate fit for a transplant needed by Ms Casalotti.

Rexith Apiag, organiser of the event said: Someone in our community could be the lucky person who could give the gift of life to Lara.”

The campaign to find a donor for Ms Casalotti has already received international attention and support from a number of celebrities as well as from Prime Minister David Cameron.