The Mom Who Saved My Son’s Life

We will never know her, but we are forever grateful.

Snuggling with my son at the hospital.

By Geralyn Saya

"Your son has cancer.”

These four words have been stuck in my head since theday my two-year-old son was diagnosed. I had noticed large bruises on his tiny body, so I took him to the doctor. I wasn’t expecting to hear “cancer.”

My husband and I had tried for seven years to conceive achild, so I wasn't going to let God take him from us this quickly. We were going to put up a fight.

My son Jared received lethal doses of chemotherapy immediately. It worked temporarily, only to have him relapse 18 months later. At this point, the doctors told us we needed to take another approach and time was ticking.

The doctors mentioned two options. The first, and more typical approach, was a bone marrow transplant, but it would take months to find a match and he probably didn't have that kind of time. Option one was out. Option two was a stem cell transplant from cord blood. This technology was fairly new. We felt that we had no idea what this medical procedure was, but there was no other choice.

Jared watching Air Bud from his hospital bed.

Cord blood stem cell transplantation involves using blood collected from an umbilical cord after a birth. This cord contains rich stem cells that can develop into the type of blood cells the patient's body needs. There are two ways to save cord blood cells: you can pay to save your own baby’s stem cells, or you can donate them for free to a public bank.

For 126 days, Jared stayed in an isolation room where he prepared for his transplant, received his transplant, and then waited for new cells to grow. He would wave to his six-month-old sister through the window. He silly-stringed the doctors and nurses for amusement, and he watched the movie Air Bud everyday.

My son is alive today because a mom in New York City decided to donate her child's cells to the blood bank there instead of throwing them away. To think, an umbilical cord that a doctor would otherwise toss out when the baby is born turned into a life-saving treatment! Your trash is someone's treasure — someone’s miracle. It was our miracle.

In the years after Jared’s treatment, a wonderful, amazing cord blood donation center was built right in our town. In 2017, Senator John DeFransisco helped open the Upstate Cord Blood Bank here in Syracuse. Anyone delivering a baby at Community Hospital, Crouse Hospital, or St. Joe’s Hospital can donate to Upstate Cord Blood Bank. This is the only public bank in New York that is currently accepting new donations, and you can only donate to the bank through these hospitals. Central New York moms have a rare chance to save a life.

Jared (far left) moments before scoring a goal at a high school soccer game.

Now, Jared is 27 years old. He played soccer in high school, went to college, and started his own insurance company. He is happy and healthy with few long-term side effects.

We are forever grateful to the mom who was — and still is — our hero. Or as Jared calls her, "An Earth Angel."

Expecting A Baby?

Consider donating cord blood. Visit upstatecordbloodbank.com to learn more.