Winnipeg family looking for a full match stem cell donor for daughter with aplastic anemia

Instead of the classroom, 4-year-old Laylah Simon spends most of her time visiting hospitals this year. It has been the new norm for the family since Laylah was diagnosed with severe aplastic anemia last March.

“Initially, we did this treatment, and we’re hoping it would work, but in the end, it didn’t work, so we had to do a bone marrow biopsy,” says Jhay Simon, Laylah’s father. “Her bone marrow doesn’t produce red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets.”

Laylah’s health condition has been tough for the family. It meant undergoing multiple medical procedures and taking extra precautions during physical activities.

“She has no immune system in her body, she has no neutrophil count, and that means we can’t be around our family, and we also have a 2-year-old son, so while she was in the hospital, we barely saw him at the time.” Laylah’s mother, Cassy Pinette, says.

What gives hope to the family, they say, is a potential bone marrow transplant, but the challenge is finding a full match for Laylah, who is half Filipino.

“My wife Cassy, I, and Easton, our 2-year-old, are half matches with Laylah as a donor,” Simon says. “For a bone marrow transplant, it’s good to have a full 10/10 donor. If that doesn’t come our way with the swabs and all the campaign that we’ve been doing, either my son or I will be the donor.”

The family launched a social media campaign to find a stem cell donor for Laylah.

According to the Canadian Blood Services (CBS), the number of Filipino donors in their stem cell registry is only almost at 1%. Asian, Black, Hispanic, and mixed-race individuals continue to be underrepresented in the CBS registry.

The family hopes their campaign will reach the community and help boost awareness of the need for more mixed-race stem cell donors.

To find out if you’re eligible to donate, click here.