Dying orphan saved by Chinese transplant

2007-12-21

The adopted American girl Kailee Wells, her mother Linda Wells and Wang Lin share a light moment at an event organized by the Red Cross Society of China held in Beijing yesterday. This was the first time for Kailee to meet Wang who donated bone marrow to save the 10-year-old girl.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

AN adopted American girl who had been dying from bone marrow failure but survived after a transplant finally met her donor in an emotional get-together yesterday in her homeland of China.

Ten-year-old Kailee Wells presented a tearful Wang Lin with a picture frame inscribed: "You are my hero. I will love you forever," The Associated Press reported.

Wang swept Kailee up in a big hug when they met in Beijing at the gathering organized by the Red Cross Society of China.

"To see her standing before me, I feel so moved, so happy," said Wang, 30, a doctor from the eastern city of Hangzhou. "The fact that we could be matched among this sea of people is a matter of fate."

The bespectacled Kailee, wearing a maroon dress with white lace, stood shyly by and held Wang's hand.

Born in the central province of Hunan, Kailee was found abandoned on the steps of a training institute for teachers in the city of Changde. She spent a year in an orphanage before being adopted by the Wells family of Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Just after turning five, she fell ill with aplastic anemia, in which the bone marrow stops producing blood platelets and red and white blood cells.

After a desperate and unsuccessful search on international marrow donor Websites, Kailee's mother, Linda Wells, came to China in 2003 hoping to find a match, preferably from a sibling. But none was found.

In 2005, from a donor pool that had expanded to about 300,000 people, Wang - who is the father of a young son - was found as a suitable candidate.

After one unsuccessful transplant with cells that were not a perfect match, Kailee had her second in November 2005 with Wang's bone marrow but her blood counts decreased.

In February, she had her third transplant - which her mother said was her last chance - and it was successful.

At yesterday's ceremony, Wang gave Kailee a calendar with photos of his family.

When asked how she felt about meeting her benefactor, Kailee said one word: "Pleasure."

Owen Wells, her father, told Wang he was "Kailee's special daddy" as he shook hands with him.

Kailee and her family, who now live in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, say they will be spending Christmas in China and want to help recruit more marrow donors. They will also make a trip to Hunan to meet other orphans, The AP said.

The number of China's bone marrow donors on the registry has grown from tens of thousands in 2003 to 700,000 today, thanks to a better understanding of the procedure by ordinary Chinese citizens.

"More people need to have basic knowledge of it. At present they are frightened when they hear about marrow donation," said Hong Junling, director of the Red Cross Society's blood and stem cell program. "They need to know there's no harm to their health."

Even with 700,000 potential donors, only 60 percent of people who need a match will find one, Hong said. Having between 2 million and 5 million people on the registry will mean the demand can be fully met, he said.

http://www.shanghaidaily.com/sp/article/2007/200712/20071221/article_342454_1.htm





China-Babies Research