Footballer Donates Bone Marrow And Saves Life Of A 5-Month-Old Girl
Donating bone marrow is no easy task for someone who doesn’t know what to expect. Footballer Mike Mushaw had no idea that his donation would save the life of a 5-month-old baby girl who was diagnosed with a rare immunodeficiency disease when she was just 3-month-old. Life was tough for little Eleanor, who barely left her house except for hospital or doctor visits, as her immune system was extremely weak – too weak to even risk casual human contact. Eleanor’s mom, Jessica, was quoted saying that without a bone marrow transplant, it was unlikely that her little girl would survive toddlerhood. The family faced a difficult situation, no doubt, and they were willing to go all-in for their little princess, but what about the bone marrow?
Meet Mike Mushaw, an avid footballer who joined the national bone marrow registry when he was only 18 years old. Mushaw’s college football coach encouraged him and his teammates to register, and they were all under the assumption that none of them will get a call requesting the pledged donation. But little did he know that Eleanor’s life depended on his donation and so, six months after signing up, Mushaw received a call telling him that his bone marrow matched a patient in Virginia. The ball was in Mushaw’s court as he had to decide – donating bone marrow meant that he would have to spend a night in the hospital and undergo general anesthesia. Without wasting a moment, the footballer agreed to donate his bone marrow, but it was only after giving 17 vials of blood did he realize what he was really doing.
There was no going back, and although he didn’t know who the patient was, he hoped and prayed that the donation would work. Meanwhile, Eleanor’s condition only became worse. While the doctors couldn’t guarantee the success of the bone marrow transplant, her family prayed for the best and proceeded, hoping that the transplant would improve her condition and allow her to live a normal life. A few weeks after the bone marrow transplant, the doctors at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, DC, confirmed that Eleanor’s condition hadn’t improved. In fact, Mushaw’s donation had cured her! The overjoyed family wanted to personally thank Mushaw, and so, instead of remaining anonymous, they sent him an email that left the footballer in tears.
Mushaw requested the family if he could regularly FaceTime Eleanor to check on her progress and be part of her life, and the family agreed. Eleanor, who’s now a happy and healthy two-year-old watches the now 21-year-old Mushaw’s football games on TV and they’re both inseparable! Not only have Eleanor and her family traveled all the way to Connecticut to meet Mushaw at one of his games, but Mushaw also traveled to Virginia in January to celebrate Eleanor’s birthday! Eleanor and Mushaw, who were both complete strangers, were brought together by fate and are now a big part of each other’s lives! What a happy ending, indeed!
If you were to say a few words to Eleanor and Mushaw, what would they be? Let us know in the comments below. Don’t forget to share this article with your friends!
