A FOUR-YEAR-OLD girl from Ellesmere Port is doing a sponsored swim to raise money in memory of her grandad who died from leukaemia.

Ana Frausto, who attends Cambridge Road Primary School, will be swimming the length of the pool at Ellesmere Port Sports Village in aid of the charity DKMS, which helps match blood cancer patients with stem cell donors.

Her grandad Paul Gillard, who lived in Princes Road, was matched with five potential donors but was too unwell to undergo a transplant operation and lost his six-month battle with leukaemia in August 2018, aged 58.

Ana will tackle her 25m swim at 6pm on Sunday, March 8, which would have been the father-of-three Paul's 60th birthday weekend.

The youngster will be cheered on by family and friends including her parents Jose and Rachel Frausto, of Wellington Close, and her grandmother Alexandra Gillard, wife of Paul, who is an instructor for Ellesmere Port Swimming Club.

Alexandra said: "Paul doted on Ana and she's really looking forward to doing something for her grandad. She's told all her friends and teachers about it.

"She really enjoys swimming and does lessons at the sports village. We actually came up with the idea because my son Jack, Ana's uncle, did a sponsored swim about ten years ago when Paul survived a brain haemorrhage.

"Ana is following in his footsteps. She's never swam the length of the pool before and she will be doing it when I'm teaching Ellesmere Port Swimming Club as she'll have a lane to herself and plenty of lifeguards around.

"I only set up the Facebook fundraising page on Monday (February 24) and we've already raised £315. When I set the page up my phone died and when I charged it and turned it back on there was already £170 that had been donated!

"DKMS is a charity we really want to support. It costs £40 to register as a donor and you only have to do a mouth swab and give some blood. It could save someone's life."

Paul, who worked as a HGV driver and enjoyed regular trips to his holiday home in Pwllheli, was diagnosed with leukaemia in February 2018.

Alexandra said: "Paul was getting a lot of bruising for no apparent reason and his gums were bleeding. He'd been calling 111 and was sent to the dentist twice because of his bleeding gums.

"He was given antibiotics but it didn't make him any better. We pushed for a blood test which he had at 5pm on February 13 and by 7pm we had a call from the Countess of Chester asking him to come in immediately.

"The next day he started chemotherapy. For ten days he underwent intensive chemo and was very, very poorly. We then discovered that he had appendicitis, which was diagnosed on his birthday.

"When they operated on Paul they didn't expect him to live but he came through it. Even the surgeon said I don't know how he's still alive. He then got pneumonia and an infection but he came through all that as well.

"My daughter, Ana's mum, brought her wedding forward in the June and he came out of hospital for that and walked her down the aisle.

"We were then told that he needed a stem cell transplant. One of his brothers was a match but due to heart problems was not fit enough to go through it which is when we were referred to DKMS.

"Within about a month they had found Paul five donors and he was originally supposed to have a transplant in the August but he wasn't fit enough for what is a really gruelling operation.

"They were trying to get him fit for it but unfortunately Paul collapsed in hospital and died a couple of days later. The leukaemia had gone into his central nervous system."

DKMS, which is a global organisation and a registered UK charity, aims to one day provide every blood cancer patient with a matching donor or help with access to treatment.

To sponsor Ana go on Facebook and search Alex Gillard whose page provides information on how to donate.