In April 2021, Laura James’ family traveled from Indiana to Iowa to celebrate Easter with relatives. While on the trip, her four-and-a-half-year-old daughter, Haven, suddenly became ill.
Haven developed a high fever and Laura noticed that her heart rate was elevated. Laura took Haven to a local hospital, where after multiple tests the emergency doctor told her that they had serious concerns with her lab results and thought she may have cancer, “Within an hour of being at the hospital, I went from having just a sick child to a child who they thought had cancer,” recalled Laura.
Haven had dangerously low hemoglobin and was admitted to the children’s oncology unit. According to Laura, the next day Haven was diagnosed with B-Cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, which is the most common type of cancer in children. During our conversation, Laura told us that it is a moment that she will never forget and that she would have done anything to have traded places with her daughter.
Laura and her husband knew that Haven needed to start treatment right away. In Iowa, she was given multiple blood transfusions to help bring up her hemoglobin level. Haven was brought to Chicago on a medical flight, where she continued to receive blood and platelet transfusions during her 26 months of chemotherapy, “It was really important that she got those transfusions in order to help her to continue to effectively fight cancer and ultimately win the battle,” said Laura.
Laura who was already a blood donor and blood drive sponsor told us during our conversation that after Haven’s diagnosis, it became even more important to continue those blood drives in her honor and added, “You never know when it is going to be your family. I never ever would have thought in a million years that I would have a daughter diagnosed with leukemia but unfortunately, that became our reality.”
Haven has been in remission since June of 2023 and her story is a testament to the impact that blood donors have on those in need of transfusions. As for Laura, she has one simple message to the donors who unknowingly donated to Haven, “Thank you for saving my daughter’s life.”
Haven is now seven years old. She is a happy and healthy child who plays soccer, goes to volleyball clinics with her big sister and is on a travel cheer team.
Through blood donation, you can make an impact on the lives of patients and their families. Find out how to donate by visiting redcrossblood.org.
Written by Communications Intern, Katriel Lin.