The father of a 5-year-old boy who died of leukemia after he  refused to donate his bone marrow has responded to the public condemnation in which Web users described him as "cruel- hearted" and "scum."

However, his wife told the Global Times Tuesday that his response was ridiculous.

The boy, named Hu Yushuo, who died on October 17, was diagnosed with leukemia in August 2011. Doctors recommended a bone marrow transplant, but his father Hu Qingsen, who had agreed to donate his marrow, suddenly pulled out and stopped paying the child's daily expenses in May, the Legal Mirror reported.

When Hu, a taxi driver, failed to attend his son's funeral at Babaoshan Cemetery on Sunday, public anger intensified.

Hu released a blog on Sunday to respond to the public vitriol. He claimed in the blog that he and his family have suffered huge pain, humiliation and sadness and encountered condemnation from Web users who do not know the truth.

The reason he refused to donate the marrow was actually to extend his son's life and reduce his pain because the son's health condition showed that it was "not the best time for a transplant," he wrote.

He claimed that he and his family had paid over 300,000 yuan ($48,000) during the early days of his son's disease.

"My wife Li Yangyang threatened to pour sulfuric acid on me several times, which brings me physical and mental hurt. So I didn't dare meet Li and her family and I couldn't visit my son in hospital," he alleged in the blog.

"It is ridiculous," Li told the Global Times Tuesday, "I even wanted to stab him to death. But do you believe him?"

"His family put pressure on me to have another baby in April but I refused because of my son's condition. To escape this pressure, I suggested living with my mother for a while and they then threatened not to pay the medical fees," she said.

"Seeing his son's health declined, he suddenly decided not to donate marrow on May 9 because he didn't want to lose the child and the money," she said.

Li explained that although she was the next compatible donor, it was impossible to do the procedure at the time. 

"It's because it takes about 10 days to go through the necessary medical checks," she said, "if only he had told me earlier."

Hu was unavailable Tuesday.