The 3-year-old Ayşe Ölmez from Şanlıurfa, who was diagnosed with the rare immune system disease "Chediak Higashi Syndrome," survived her serious health problems thanks to a bone marrow transplant from her older brother.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Barış Malbora stated, “70 days have passed since the transplant, and everything is now fine. The patient held on to life just like her surname [Ölmez means 'immortal' or 'doesn't die' in Turkish].”
Ayşe Ölmez's older sister, Esra Ölmez, said, “My mother went to Şanlıurfa for a few days. I took a break from school this year so I wouldn't leave her alone in İzmir. I hope to continue next year; what's important is my sister's health.”
3-year-old Ayşe Ölmez, who was fighting the rare immune system disease "Chediak Higashi Syndrome," was given a new lease on life with a bone marrow transplant from her 8-year-old brother.
Born as the 8th child to Emine and İsmail Ölmez in the Harran district of Şanlıurfa, Ayşe Ölmez was first taken to Harran University Faculty of Medicine Hospital and then to a hospital in Adana last June due to a high fever, but she couldn't be diagnosed.
After the family applied to the Health Sciences University (SBÜ) İzmir Tepecik Training and Research Hospital, Ayşe Ölmez was diagnosed with "Chediak Higashi Syndrome" after tests were conducted.
Doctors started antibiotic treatment for the little girl but stated that a definitive cure could only be achieved with a bone marrow transplant.
A search for a suitable donor from the family began for Ayşe. During this process, it was determined that both her brother and mother were a match. Doctors decided to perform the transplant from her 8-year-old brother, Mehmet Ölmez.
Meanwhile, while preparing for the transplant, little Ayşe went through difficult times due to a catheter infection and a veno-occlusive disease that resulted from the blockage of some small liver veins.
Ölmez, who stayed in the intensive care unit for a while, regained her health after a special drug treatment and the subsequent bone marrow transplant from her older brother.
A Liver Disease We Rarely See
In a statement to the Anadolu Agency (AA) reporter, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Barış Malbora, the Administrative Head of the Pediatric Hematology and Oncology Clinic at SBÜ İzmir Tepecik Training and Research Hospital, said that Ayşe Ölmez was in a very serious condition when she was brought to them.
Stating that the only cure for "Chediak Higashi" syndrome is a bone marrow transplant, Malbora continued:
“The 80 days before and after the transplant were difficult for us. The catheter infection seriously threatened Ayşe's life. Then, she developed a liver disease that we rarely see before and after a transplant. Her liver grew so large that it almost filled her entire abdomen. During this time, her blood values dropped, and her liver functions deteriorated. The problem worsened and spread to her lungs. We attached her to a respiratory machine for a while and managed to stabilize her.”
Malbora stated that all his colleagues worked very hard to help Ayşe regain her health and that they stayed by the little girl's side on some nights while she was being treated in intensive care.
Expressing their happiness at seeing that the treatment they applied had a positive response, Malbora said, “70 days have passed since the transplant, and everything is now fine. The patient held on to life just like her surname.”
Took a Break from School for Her Sister
13-year-old Esra Ölmez, Ayşe's older sister, said she was happy that her sister had regained her health.
Esra Ölmez, who explained that she and her mother were taking care of her sister, said, “My mother went to Şanlıurfa for a few days. I took a break from school this year so I wouldn't leave her alone in İzmir. I hope to continue next year; what's important is my sister's health. My sister had some health problems after the transplant, but thank God, she is better now.”