Patient Stories

Logan’s Journey: A Mother’s Strength and a Miracle of Grace When Julia first learned she was pregnant with her son, Logan, she never could have imagined the journey that awaited her. At 15 weeks, she fell severely ill, spiking high fevers and developing sepsis. Though doctors couldn’t pinpoint the cause, Julia sensed something wasn’t right. At 33 weeks, she was rushed into an emergency C-section due to preeclampsia. Logan arrived early but strong, breathing and eating on his own. His platelets were slightly low at birth, but doctors assured Julia it was nothing to worry about. However, just a few weeks later, Julia began noticing bruises on her tiny son’s body. First one on his leg, then another on his stomach. Concerned, she pushed for answers. Multiple blood draws failed; samples kept clotting. Finally, she was referred to Texas Children’s Hospital, where doctors discovered Logan’s platelets were dangerously low, less than 20,000. He needed an immediate transfusion. After rounds of testing, Julia received the diagnosis no mother ever expects: Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome (WAS), a rare, one-in-a-million genetic disorder that weakens the immune system and causes severe bleeding and bruising. “I had never even heard of it before,” Julia recalled. “They told me only [...]

Ariah’s Miracle: A Journey of Faith, Strength, and Healing When Lisa found out she was expecting her first baby, she described her pregnancy as calm and joyful, aside from a few clumsy tumbles that would later remind her just how strong both she and her baby truly were. At 34 weeks, after several days of leaking amniotic fluid, Lisa learned that her water had ruptured and she would need to deliver early. Her daughter, Ariah, was born on January 10, 2025, six weeks ahead of schedule. Despite a stay in the NICU, Ariah was a fighter from the very beginning. Just a couple of months later, Lisa noticed something was wrong. Ariah developed a fever after her vaccines that wouldn’t go away, and soon, a full-body rash appeared. After several visits to the hospital, doctors delivered a diagnosis that would change their world: Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH). This rare, life-threatening immune disorder would require chemotherapy and a bone marrow transplant. “When they told me she would need a transplant, I was terrified,” Lisa recalls. “I had never heard of HLH, and everything I read online was so scary. But once we arrived at Texas Children’s Hospital, we felt peace knowing she was in [...]

Robert’s Journey: A Family’s Faith Through Healing When Delisa and her husband, Robert, learned they were expecting their first son after five daughters, they were overjoyed. Their prayers had been answered. But only weeks after baby Robert was born, their world changed. “They called and said his newborn screening came back showing he had sickle cell disease,” Delisa recalled. “I was so confused. All of my daughters have the sickle cell trait, just like me, but none had the disease. I couldn’t believe my only son did.” Delisa’s father also had sickle cell disease and passed away from it at age 50. The diagnosis reopened old wounds and brought a wave of fear and uncertainty. As Robert grew, hospital visits became routine. “He had swollen hands, pain crises, pneumonia, COVID, the flu; he caught everything,” Delisa said. “It felt like he was sick all the time.” When Robert was three, his hematologist at Texas Children’s Hospital discussed the possibility of a bone marrow transplant. With five sisters, the family hoped one would be a match. “All the girls got tested,” Delisa said. “They were nervous because they were scared of needles. But out of all of them, my daughter Laycie, who [...]

Maddie Grace: A Light That Time Could Not Dim From the very beginning, Madelyn “Maddie” Grace Albright was a force of nature. Born full-term and healthy, she showed signs of her spirited personality even in the NICU. Nurses would comment on her attitude, and her family quickly realized she was a little firecracker — sassy, vibrant, and impossible not to love. She was the heartbeat of her family, the bright light that drew everyone in. When Maddie was seven, the family noticed subtle aches and unusual swelling. What began as what seemed like “growing pains” quickly escalated into something far more serious. Persistent advocacy from her mother, Candace, led to a diagnosis of T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a rare and aggressive form of leukemia. From that moment on, Maddie’s life, and her family’s, would change forever. Maddie’s treatment was grueling: intense chemotherapy, multiple hospital stays, and ultimately a bone marrow transplant in May 2022. Throughout this journey, her family faced not only the emotional toll of her illness but practical challenges as well. They lived three hours away from Houston, had no nearby family, and just before the transplant, her father, Jeremy, lost his job due to a city policy regarding [...]

How Nora’s Strength and His Grace Foundation Helped Us Through the Darkest Days When Nora turned two, we noticed something wasn’t quite right. She’d always been spunky and full of life, but then she became clingy, tired, and not quite herself. We thought it was just a phase, maybe the ups and downs of toddlerhood. One August day, as our family was out running errands, Nora began crying in pain, clutching her stomach and saying, “Owie.” It was a sound no parent ever forgets. We rushed her to the ER at Texas Children’s Hospital, but after several hours, they sent us home, saying it was likely just gas.  The next two weeks were terrifying. She was declining quickly, sleeping too much, and refusing to eat or drink. I finally showed up unannounced at her pediatrician’s office, desperate for answers. Within minutes, her doctor ordered a scan. By that evening, our world changed forever. “There’s a mass in Nora’s abdomen.” I’ll never forget those words. My husband wasn’t allowed to be with me because of COVID restrictions, so I sat in the waiting room, shaking, trying to process what I’d just heard. Within hours, we were in an ambulance headed to the [...]

Morgan’s Story: “We are so blessed to have been served by His Grace Foundation." When Morgan was born with sickle cell disease, pain became a part of her life, including monthly crises, hospital stays, and days when she simply couldn’t do what other kids her age did. At 15, during a Make-A-Wish trip to Galveston, a crisis sent her to the local hospital and set everything in motion: specialists who recognized what her previous doctors had not, and the start of a path that would change our family forever. It wasn’t easy. The transplant journey tested every bit of us. The first week in the hospital felt manageable, but the second week, when chemo hit harder, the sores appeared, and her hair began to fall out; it was brutal. I still remember a hallway moment when I fell apart and every single nurse came over, patted me, and let me cry. That kindness kept me going when I felt powerless to help my child. We were blessed in more ways than one. Morgan’s little brother, Andrew, turned out to be a perfect 10/10 match. The cord blood we had banked years before became the gift of possibility; it felt like it was meant to be. [...]

When Braden was just nine years old, his life changed in an instant. What started as simple injuries that wouldn’t heal led to a diagnosis of Philadelphia chromosome-positive acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Overnight, his family was thrust into a new world of hospitals, treatments, and medical language no parent ever imagines having to learn. Amanda, his mom, remembers those early days vividly, juggling a newborn, a toddler, and now a very sick child. “They handed me this giant binder, and it was like learning a whole new language. But I realized quickly that God had been preparing me. My past jobs in the medical field helped me absorb it all and advocate for Braden.” Braden went into remission within months, and for years life moved forward. But in late 2022, as a 19-year-old sophomore at Baylor University, Braden began experiencing pain in his knee that wouldn’t go away. Bloodwork confirmed their worst fears: the leukemia had returned. “I’m not a complainer,” Braden shared. “I was making it work, even through the pain. But when the doctor called and said, ‘Something’s wrong, you need to get to the hospital immediately,’ I knew it was serious.” Within weeks, he was back at Texas Children’s Hospital preparing for a bone marrow transplant. For [...]

When I look back, I can only say it was the presence of God that carried us through. There were many moments when I felt I could not do this alone and I was right, I couldn’t. Prayer kept me grounded. It gave me the strength to keep going for my son, Nathan, and his brothers. Nathan was diagnosed with sickle cell disease at age five in Tanzania. As a baby, he was often sick with fevers, infections, and severe pain. His hemoglobin levels were dangerously low, and his growth was stunted. School became a constant cycle of being present for two weeks and sick at home for two weeks. I knew my son’s future in Tanzania was uncertain. In 2020, after much prayer, I made the difficult decision to leave everything behind and come to the United States for the sake of my children’s survival.  By 2023, Nathan joined me in Texas. He was twelve years old and continued to battle sickle cell crises. In late 2023, after repeated hospitalizations, his doctors at Texas Children’s Hospital recommended a bone marrow transplant. To our amazement, his younger brother was found to be a 100% genetic match, a golden match. With [...]

When Owen was born, Sarah and Brandon said life seemed relatively normal for his first two and a half years. Their daughter Claire thrived in kindergarten, dance, and school life, often becoming the center of attention. But everything changed when Owen was diagnosed with medulloblastoma, a pediatric brain cancer. Overnight, the family’s focus shifted entirely to Owen, and Claire, just starting kindergarten, was temporarily pushed to the background. Sarah recalls the first signs vividly: neck pain, irritability, occasional falls, and morning vomiting. At first, they were dismissed as typical toddler behavior, but the symptoms persisted. After multiple doctor visits, Owen was eventually recommended for further testing. The reality became clear: Owen had a brain tumor. His treatment journey was grueling. He underwent surgery and six months of chemotherapy, but after completing treatment, he had a recurrence. That’s when he needed two more brain surgeries, high-dose proton radiation to the head and spine with a boost to the tumor bed, and high–dose chemotherapy with 4 stem cell rescues. Remarkably, Owen became his own hero, donating his own stem cells for the transplant. At just three years old, he endured seven hours of stem cell donation without sedation, staying perfectly still during [...]

When Colten was just nine months old, his parents, Karen and Tad, took him in for a routine doctor’s appointment. What was supposed to be a simple check quickly turned into a years-long medical journey. His platelet count was dangerously low, and while doctors couldn’t find a definitive cause, the possibility of leukemia loomed heavily over their family. For three years, the Collier family made trip after trip to Texas Children’s Hospital. Each time, they were told Colten was “fine” despite unexplained bruising and consistently low platelets. Answers finally came when Colten was almost four years old. After advanced genetic testing, he was diagnosed with Congenital Amegakaryocytic Thrombocytopenia (CAMT), an extremely rare condition with only about 100 known cases worldwide at the time. CAMT meant Colten’s body could not maintain platelets, and without treatment, it would eventually progress into leukemia or bone marrow failure. The only cure was a bone marrow transplant. In August 2015, Colten received his transplant at Texas Children’s Hospital. His perfect match was a man from Poland, whose gift of life gave Colten a chance at a healthy future. By then, his platelets had dropped as low as 5,000 (a normal range is 150,000–400,000). Without the transplant, [...]