Winnipeg boy, 7, back to running, Rollerblading after brother donates stem cells following 4-year search
Tanner McLeod's recovery 'unbelievable' after life-changing donation from brother Teemu, mother says
Seven-year-old Tanner McLeod is a busy boy, making up for lost time and energy.
In March, the Winnipeg boy underwent a life-changing stem cell transplant for a rare blood disorder — and it was his older brother, Teemu, who came to the rescue.
Once a pale, exhausted boy with little appetite, Tanner is now running laps, in-line skating and enjoying hearty meals of chicken and noodles.
"It is unbelievable. It is unreal," said Miranda McLeod, the boys' mother.
"I am so happy and grateful the transplant worked. He has so much energy now — he can run miles," she said, laughing. "He went to a track and ran four laps non-stop. It was such a joy to see."
It's a whole new world for the Grade 3 student, who is being tutored at home during the pandemic.
While the child is embracing his new life, there is one thing he doesn't miss.
"Not getting pokes," said Tanner, sitting on his mother's lap.
"He was so tired of getting needles for blood work," she explained.
Tanner was only six months old when he was diagnosed with sideroblastic anemia.
The disease left him unable to produce healthy red blood cells. He had to have a blood transfusion every three weeks, when his hemoglobin levels dropped too low.
For four years, his mother and a medical team were on a mission to find a possible stem cell match through Canadian Blood Services.
'An honour to give that to my little brother'
Miranda, who is from Pimicikamak Cree Nation — also known as Cross Lake — thought Tanner was more likely to find a match within the First Nations population. But donors are hard to come by.
There were efforts to find one, including by the Waywayseecappo Wolverines MJHL hockey team, all of whom joined the stem cell donor registry in 2019.
But in the end, Tanner's donor was found right at home.
The medical team was hoping for a 100 per cent match, but Teemu, 17, was only a 50 per cent match. However, Tanner's doctors said medical advancements made the transplant possible even without a perfect match.
"It was an honour to give that to my little brother, especially knowing and seeing what he has been going through for so many years," said Teemu, who will graduate from Garden City Collegiate this year.
"It feels something along the lines of saving another person's world. Not the world in general — just saving his own world, to have a future."
The boys' mother founded a grassroots organization called Natamakewin — a Cree word meaning to save or rescue someone. That's what Teemu has done for his brother, she says.
"Looking at Tanner's progress, I see what Teemu has done for him."
Register to donate, mother urges
She knows, though, the outcome could have been very different if a match wasn't found, or if Tanner's body rejected Teemu's donation.
"He was in the hospital for eight weeks. I would walk the halls and talk to myself, stressed and worried if the transplant didn't take. I didn't have any support at that time, as no visitors were allowed in because of COVID," she said.
Miranda encourages people from different ethnic backgrounds to register to donate stem cells. According to Canadian Blood Services, less than a third of Canada's potential stem cell donors are from non-Caucasian ethnicities.
"I will continue to say how important it is to sign up on the stem cell registry.… It just might end up having a good ending to someone else's story, similar to ours," she said.
As for Teemu and Tanner, being blood brothers has now taken on a whole new meaning.
"It definitely brings us closer now," Teemu said. "It feels like I have accomplished something at a very young age, now that he can play outside and do whatever he likes with sports and whatnot. It is so good to see."
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