Cancer

Toddler Once Diagnosed With Rare Form of Cancer Meets Her Life-Saving Blood Donors

Skye was just over a year old when she was diagnosed with a form of cancer that only affects one in a million children.

For most of us, when we donate blood, we never meet the people whose lives we save, but that wasn’t the case for over two dozen donors who saved 2-year-old Skye Savren-McCormick after she was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer.

Skye was just over a year old when she was diagnosed with a form of cancer that only affects one in a million children – an illness that prevented the child from making her own, healthy blood cells.

"Some doctors said the chances of survival were not very good; it was going to be a lot of pain and suffering," Skye’s mother Talia Savren-McCormick said. "They said we should probably take her home and put her on palliative care and say, 'This is the end.'"

Despite doctor’s suggestion, baby Skye continued to fight for her life and refused to give up. She remained hospitalized for 10 months as she underwent seven rounds of chemotherapy, three grueling bone marrow transplants and 77 transfusions of blood and platelets.

The little trooper made it to her 2nd birthday and was released from the hospital cancer-free.

Skye and her parents met several blood donors Friday to thank them for their help in saving her young life in a celebration dinner organized by UCLA.

"It was really rewarding to feel it actually made an impact," Matt Ruby, one of Skye’s blood donors said.

The donors thought they would never meet any of the people they’d helped.

"Come on, it’s indescribable," blood donor Howard Turner said. "It's awesome."

Skye still needs more medical care but thanks to the selflessness of her donors, doctors say she is going to make it.

"When you donate, think of Sky and how you helped save her life, and how you pumped life into her body and pumped hope into our family," Talia said in a thank you speech to her daughter’s donors. "Thank you so much."

Editor's Note: This story has been updated to reflect the correct name of Skye Savren-McCormick.

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