Following a knifepoint mugging in February 2023, Mr Laskey was squirted with a highly corrosive substance causing fourth-degree burns immediately, with the cells unable to repair or regenerate. He was swiftly taken to hospital by police who arrived at the scene. Emergency medics worked to flush as much acid out of the eye as possible.
"It was horrific. Instantly, I couldn't see anything"
He was confined to a dark room for six hours due to any source of light being too painful, causing “horrific” headaches. He told the BBC: “It was horrific. Instantly, I couldn’t see anything”.
Within the following months he received several treatments from Newcastle’s Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI). This included the amnion - the official name of tissue taken from the inner lining of the donated placenta. Though his eye was saved, doctors are still trying to restore more of his vision through stem cell treatment, on top of the total eight-month treatment plan.
Laskey’s son, who was there during the attack, is said to still be reeling from it and feels “a lot of guilt”. To which Laskey stated, “it’s not his fault”. The man who was responsible for the attack was jailed in August 2024 for 10-11 years after the case was appealed to the Court of Justice.
Using donated placenta is not a new form of treatment, the organs’ length itself can provide between 50-100 amnion grafts and the high-protein growth factors which can stimulate the healing process. The first placenta graft can be dated back to 1910 to treat a skin wound; it has been used since to cure eye injuries, burns, and chronic injuries.