Ryan’s world: blood donations kept toddler alive

While Ryan Hyland, three and half, is undergoing procedures at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto starting this week, his grandparents David and Anne Miles have been travelling back and forth on Highway 401 from their Beaconsfield home since he was diagnosed with JMML leukemia in mid-November. The boy’s bone marrow treatment procedure was able to start Monday due to the fact his 18-month-old sister was determined to be a perfect match last month. The procedures start with 10 days of chemotherapy to eliminate cancer cells. Then the bone marrow transplant will take place and he will be in isolation (with one of his parents, mostly his mother) for about two months. If all these procedures work out, Ryan will come out of the hospital April 6, David Miles said.

“We only have one shot at this, most have two shots, because they can’t extract enough bone marrow from his little sister (since she is so young),” he said.

However, without the multiple infusions he started receiving Nov. 15, Ryan wouldn’t be alive today to receive the bone marrow transplant, Miles said, adding his grandson required platelets made from donated blood. The upcoming Feb. 11 blood drive in Beaconsfield won’t help Ryan directly, but Miles said he hopes his story will inspire others to come forward to give blood or register for bone marrow matches.

“It’s a resource nightmare,” is how Miles summarized the need for donated blood, adding it takes one unit of blood to obtain a third unit of platelets which are required to prevent internal bleeding. “It’s an issue for all other kids out there,” he added. “It could be anyone next time (who gets sick).”

He hopes the Beaconsfield blood drive will help educate people, adding he never realized just how important donating blood is until he visited with his grandson in hospital.

Shirley Caron, a longtime neighbour of the Miles family, said she and her daughters were inspired by Ryan’s plight to organize the blood drive on behalf of Héma-Québec. “We hope to raise awareness about blood and bone marrow donations,” she said.

Ryan’s mother, Suzanne Miles, grew up in the West Island and moved to the Toronto area about eight years ago. She brought Ryan to see his doctor after noticing an abnormally large bruise. After going in for blood tests, doctors made the leukemia diagnosis.

The Feb. 11 blood drive takes place from 1:15 to 8 p.m. at St. Edmund of Canterbury Parish Church, 105 Beaconsfield Blvd., which is just west of St. Charles Boulevard.

For more information on the boy’s story, check www.ryanroar.ca.