FAMILY SEEKS BONE MARROW PATRON FOR BOY WITH LEUKEMIA.Byline: Sue Doyle Staff Writer STEVENSON RANCH - Ryan Baker's goals in life are to be on the big screen, rule the streets with his skateboard and master race car video games. But the fair-haired sixth-grader also has another wish: to be cancer-free. The 11-year-old needs a bone marrow transplant bone marrow transplant: see bone marrow. . Parents Sandra and Tim are not a match. Neither is his big sister Amanda. The Stevenson Ranch family is looking for Looking for In the context of general equities, this describing a buy interest in which a dealer is asked to offer stock, often involving a capital commitment. Antithesis of in touch with. a donor to save their boy's life, and in January will reach out to the community for help. The assistance could come through bone marrow or an umbilical cord umbilical cord (ŭmbĭl`ĭkəl), cordlike structure about 22 in. (56 cm) long in the pregnant human female, extending from the abdominal wall of the fetus to the placenta. . The right match will bolster his body with a functional immune system immune system Cells, cell products, organs, and structures of the body involved in the detection and destruction of foreign invaders, such as bacteria, viruses, and cancer cells. Immunity is based on the system's ability to launch a defense against such invaders. that could free him from leukemia, a cancer that starts in cells in bone marrow and has plagued Ryan since kindergarten. He relapsed with the disease for the second time this fall. That's when doctors at UCLA Medical Center UCLA Medical Center is a hospital located on the campus of the University of California, Los Angeles in Los Angeles, California. It is rated as one of the top three hospitals in the United States and is the top hospital on the West Coast according to US News & World Report. recommended a bone marrow transplant for the Meadows Elementary School pupil whose cancer has not been conquered through years of chemotherapy and radiation. ``You can only have so much chemotherapy. There are some drugs that you can only have so much of in a lifetime. You can't keep doing it,'' Sandra Baker said. Ryan was only two weeks into kindergarten when he started looking pale and just wasn't himself anymore. At first, the family wondered if he needed extra iron supplements or other vitamins. So they took him to the doctor. That's when their lives changed forever. Results from a blood test came back that day diagnosing the youngster with acute lymphoblastic leukemia acute lymphoblastic leukemia n. Abbr. ALL Lymphoblastic leukemia occurring mainly in older adults, characterized by rapid onset and progression of symptoms. Also called acute lymphocytic leukemia. . The rapidly progressing disease is the most common for those younger than 19 with about 3,970 new cases annually, according to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. With this type of leukemia, there's an uncontrollable growth of cancer cells in the bone marrow and blood, which then blocks the body's production of normal marrow cells and leads to a deficiency of red blood cells Red blood cells Cells that carry hemoglobin (the molecule that transports oxygen) and help remove wastes from tissues throughout the body. Mentioned in: Bone Marrow Transplantation red blood cells , white cells and platelets in the blood, according to the New York-based nonprofit organization Nonprofit Organization An association that is given tax-free status. Donations to a non-profit organization are often tax deductible as well. Notes: Examples of non-profit organizations are charities, hospitals and schools. . In other words Adv. 1. in other words - otherwise stated; "in other words, we are broke" put differently , the cancerous cells hinder the body's ability to fight infection, make clots and prevent the delivery of oxygen to tissues, said Noah Federman, pediatric pediatric /pe·di·at·ric/ (pe?de-at´rik) pertaining to the health of children. pe·di·at·ric adj. Of or relating to pediatrics. hematology and oncology fellow at the University of California, Los Angeles UCLA comprises the College of Letters and Science (the primary undergraduate college), seven professional schools, and five professional Health Science schools. Since 2001, UCLA has enrolled over 33,000 total students, and that number is steadily rising. , who has treated Ryan. For the next 2 1/2 years, the boy underwent chemotherapy. As time went on, he became stronger, his blood count was good, and he returned to school. But a spinal tap spinal tap: see spinal puncture. in 2001 detected the disease again. He was in second grade. Ryan Baker was admitted to the hospital the day after Christmas, and again he battled the illness with treatment that included chemotherapy and radiation. Through the treatment, the child's blond locks fell out. Medicines made him nauseated nau·se·at·ed adj. Affected with nausea. . He lost weight and sometimes couldn't walk very far. But being a kid through and through, he found a way to have some fun while lying in bed: playing video games. The toys provided a break from his illness and a chance to participate in the same kind of life that his peers lived. He also developed a love for books, with reading being among his favorite subjects in school. Math is the other. He recommends ``By the Great Horn Spoon!,'' a book about the Old West and the Gold Rush. The illness also gave him time to consider his future. For him, it's in Hollywood, where he could be a performer on stage, on TV and in the movies. ``I've always been fond of the ``Star Wars'' movies,'' Ryan said. ``I'd like to be the good guy in movies. Like a Jedi.'' His second fight with the disease came to a close as he gained back his energy and started to do his usual activities again, including attending fourth grade. The family had not been on a vacation for years and finally did some traveling, visiting Canada and the beaches of Hawaii. Then in October, Ryan relapsed for a second time. That's when a bone marrow transplant was recommended. Federman said that when a match is found, the boy's bone marrow will be wiped out and then reconstituted with marrow from a different immune system. The new system could attack any cancerous cells still floating around inside the 11-year-old. ``Ryan has really been fighting through all of this, and for a child of his age to act with the maturity he does is unbelievable,'' Federman said. ``If there's anything that's important here, it's his spirit, which will carry him through the process, which is not an easy process.'' The sixth-grader was in the hospital over Thanksgiving when the family met Theresa La Rue, who is putting together his bone marrow drive through her nonprofit Layne's Legacy, named after her son, who died in 1995 of a rare immune system disease. The Castaic woman had two other sons with the same rare disease, but they survived with bone marrow transplants. During the holidays, she visits UCLA Medical Center, where her sons were treated, and brings gifts to children and food for doctors. When she met the Bakers, she wanted to help. ``Having people help you is sometimes just enough to help you get up in the morning. I remember waiting for the phone to ring to get that match,'' she said. ``I'm praying that something comes through for Ryan.'' Sue Doyle,(661) 257-5254 sue.doyle(at)dailynews.com HOW TO HELP The bone marrow drive for Ryan Baker will be from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Jan. 22 at Church of the Nazarene Church of the Nazarene (năz'ərēn`), U.S. Protestant denomination established in 1908 through the union of the Church of the Nazarene, based in California; the Association of Pentecostal Churches, a New England group; and the Holiness , 23857 N. The Old Road, Newhall. CAPTION(S): photo, box Photo: (color) Ryan Baker, 11, a Stevenson Ranch sixth-grader, hopes to find a bone marrow donor who can help cure his leukemia. Box: HOW TO HELP (see text) |
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