Former Des Plaines boy to undergo bone marrow transplant

Kids birthdays are always special to their parents.

But for Jenny and Brad Christiansen, their son Teddy turning 3 years old on Sept. 24 was nothing short of a miracle.

Teddy, the surviving half of prematurely born twins, was one pound, seven ounces at birth and spent seven weeks in a neonatal intensive care unit. His life has been an uphill battle ever since.

Teddy fought off pertussis, a respiratory infection commonly known as whooping cough, after his 3-month-old twin brother, Kenny, succumbed to it. He has since undergone hernia surgery and three laser eye surgeries.

"From the way he was born, to even imagine that he was going to have a third birthday - it was a milestone for us, so it's very special," said Jenny Christiansen, a graduate of Maine West High School.

Then last spring, Teddy was diagnosed with a rare genetic disorder - dyskeratosis congenita - that causes bone marrow failure, or the inability of marrow to produce enough blood cells. He has a rare variant of the disorder, known as Hoyeraal-Hreidarsson syndrome, that could lead to him developing leukemia or solid organ cancer

The Christiansens, formerly of Des Plaines and now living in Union, Ill., have been mentally preparing themselves since March for the possibility that Teddy may need a bone-marrow transplant.

Finding that perfect bone marrow donor match for Teddy was a second miracle. All the family knows is that the donor is a 45-year-old woman from the United States.

Now though, Teddy faces the ordeal of undergoing the transplant through a procedure expected to take several months.

"I think our reaction was bittersweet," Jenny Christiansen said. "You are excited and happy that they found a match. (But) it puts it all into reality that this is really happening. I know that there's families that go months and years and some of them never get a donor. We feel very fortunate that part of it has fallen into place so nicely."

Teddy's transplant will be performed at University of Minnesota Children's Hospital in Minneapolis. The family will travel there in mid-October.

Teddy must first submit to a host of tests before undergoing chemotherapy and radiation to kill off his existing bone marrow. Then new stem cells from the donor's bone marrow are introduced into his body.

"Our hope is that they will engraft into his bones and help in creating new blood cells," Jenny Christiansen said. "It will, it will, it will," she added, emphatically.