A dying reporter's fight to have bone marrow education as part of the national curriculum has taken a major step forward.

Leukaemia sufferer Adrian Sudbury is battling for compulsory classes about blood, bone marrow and organ donation to be added to the programme for sixth form students.

Adrian, from the Huddersfield Daily Examiner, suffers from two types of the disease and launched his campaign after learning he may only have months to live.

Now Jim Knight, Minister of State for Schools and Learners, has said all schools and colleges will be asked to deliver the talks to pupils.

Resource material about donation will be sent out to schools and colleges in the hope they run classes during the next academic year.

It will be accompanied by a letter from Children's Secretary Ed Balls and Health Secretary Alan Johnson asking for classes to be run.

Although they will be under no obligation, this latest announcement is seen as a major leap forward for the campaign.

Adrian, who has just turned 27, told the Examiner website: "I think this is an excellent first step.

"Understanding more now about how difficult it is to make the talk about blood, bone marrow and organ donation 'compulsory', these look like genuine and committed efforts to encourage as many schools, sixth forms and colleges to educate their young adults about these life-saving issues.

"If making it compulsory is not possible – or indeed what the colleges want – we then need to think about how we can encourage as many of them as we can to continue the talk annually.

"I am struggling with a stomach bug at the moment and my energy levels are fading, but I am determined to see this through and confident, working together, we can make my dying wish a reality."

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