Getting Back to Where He Was
Nile Price fought a difficult battle with sickle cell disease, but he has come through it victorious.
While he suffered the pains and multiple hospitalizations caused by the disease, Nile’s family reached out to the community for assistance. They encouraged potential bone marrow donors to be tested. They held local fundraisers and opened a One-to-One Fund at The Bone Marrow Foundation to help pay for medical expenses, like doctors visits and medications.
Their efforts were successful. Two donors were found, and at the age of 13, Nile underwent an allogeneic bone marrow transplant. Two years later, Nile and his family met the woman whose donation cured his sickle cell disease.
Click the image above to watch a video about Nile and his recovery.
In the years following his transplant, Nile suffered graft versus host disease (GVHD) which has affected his skin and muscles. Fortunately, with the support of his family, Nile is growing stronger. His doctors are reducing his medications and have released him from physical therapy.
Nile is proud of the progress he has made, saying, “I knew I was going to get back to where I was. I just didn’t know how long it would take.”
Read more about Nile and his transplant journey:
Discussing half-matched BMTs and sickle cell disease
In the 2009 video below, Dr. Robert Brodsky, Professor of Medicine and Chief of Hematology at Johns Hopkins Medicine, discusses the procedure known as the half-matched transplant and its use in treating sickle cell disease.
Earlier this year, Dr. Brodsky was a member of a research team who reported encouraging results from a small preliminary study of sickle cell patients, some of whom received half-matched transplants. According to Brodsky, “while bone marrow transplants have long been known to cure sickle cell disease, only a small percentage of patients have fully matched, eligible donors.” The John Hopkins researchers hope that this procedure “could potentially help make bone marrow transplants accessible to a majority of sickle cell patients who need them.”
To read more about the half-match transplant study:
Lifeline Project Profiles: Sandra, Nile, and Christopher
Meet Sandra, Nile, and Christopher. They are the latest Lifeline Project participants to be profiled in our ongoing series highlighting the needs of transplant patients.
Sandra
Last year, Sandra was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). She immediately began receiving three rounds of chemotherapy. Once that was complete she received a bone marrow transplant; her donor was her only sister. Unfortunately, Sandra’s journey has been very grueling physically, emotionally, and financially. Her husband has been unable to work due to an injury and she has been unable to work due to her lengthy treatment. They need assistance paying for insurance premiums and medical costs.
Nile
Nile
Nile, the youngest of triplets, was diagnosed with sickle cell disease when he was three weeks old. He was thirteen months old when his journey of pain crisis and multiple hospitalizations began. As he continued to grow, the disease became more difficult to manage and doctors suggested a bone marrow transplant. His brothers were not a match, but they were able to find an unrelated donor. Currently, his family needs help with his transplant treatment expenses.
Christopher
Christopher
Christopher is a loving father and a kind-hearted friend who has been enduring a steady routine of doctor visits and treatments since 2005. He currently has a diagnosis of multiple myeloma for which he has received chemotherapy, blood transfusions, multiple bone marrow biopsies’, a stem cell transplant, and medicine for bone strengthening. Christopher is focusing on getting well and back to being a working father, but in the meantime he needs help with the increasing medical expenses surrounding his transplant.
To help these or any of the Lifeline Project participants, click here.
Bone Marrow & Cancer Foundation 