Reborn at 70, After Her Son Became Her Donor

Nermin Kural, a 72-year-old leukemia patient living in Istanbul, clung to life with the bone marrow taken from her son. Our transplant specialist stated that the procedure was among the most difficult transplants because it was a haploidentical (partially compatible) transplant, while the mother Kural, who was reborn after the age of 70, said, "I miraculously recovered very quickly after the transplantation of stem cells taken from my son."
Nermin Kural, 72, who was taken to the hospital with a high fever and hip pain in Muğla where she went for a holiday, was rushed to Istanbul after blood tests. As a result of the examinations performed at Yeditepe University Koşuyolu Hospital, Kural was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. The woman, who received 80 percent of the results after chemotherapy treatments, was transplanted with stem cells taken from her 44-year-old son. Despite 50 percent compliance, stem cell transplantation therapy has yielded successful results. Stating that the stem cell transplant was a very easy process for him, Nermin Kural said, "The first symptom was an infection in the large intestine, my fever increased. The disease came on suddenly. Smart medicine was used before treatment. When he did not get his answer, it was decided to transplant stem cells after a different series of treatments. The stem cells from my son were transplanted. The procedure was easily carried out through blood."

"I am No Different from A Healthy Person"

Stating that the pre-transplant chemotherapy process was a very challenging period for him, Kural said, "Before the bone marrow transplantation, chemotherapies were very tiring, my pain increased a lot, my hair fell out. The most difficult period for me was 2017. After the transplantation of the stem cells taken from my son, I miraculously recovered very quickly. I was discharged in 21 days. I am very healthy right now, very well, I am no different than any other healthy person on the street. People believe in themselves first and foremost, believing takes up 70 percent of the work. I believed in myself, my family, and my physician."

Her Son's Stem Cells Live On in His Mother

Stating that stem cell therapy is a difficult process for a 70-year-old patient, our specialist said, "Let go of self-stem cell transplantation, another (allogenic) stem cell transplantation was performed. This was the partial tissue-compatible (haploidentical) stem cell transplantation we received from her son.  Mrs. Nermin's son's cells were 50 percent compatible with his mother's. This is one of the most difficult transplants today. Partially compatible (haploidentical) transplantation is promising for high-risk patients who do not have a fully compatible donor. In the decision of stem cell transplantation, the clinical performance and the status of organ functions are more important than the age of the patient. Although Mrs. Nermin was 70 years old, her organ functions were very good, and she was lively. Her family was also extremely caring. That is why we did this difficult transplant. Her son's stem cells are still working in Mrs. Nermin."

You Can Apply to the Red Crescent Blood Center and Become Donors

Stating that transplant rates started to increase rapidly in Türkiye after stem cell transplantation was included in the scope of SSI, our specialist shared the following information,
"We have about 4,000 transplants a year. However, this is not yet at the desired level. When we look at our population, it has to be twice that. We believe this will increase over time. Because it increases every year. Another influential factor is TURKÖK. Before this place was founded, there was always research from abroad. It took a long time. Therefore, together with TURKÖK, we can find almost half of the marrow we are looking for from Türkiye. Healthy individuals (between the ages of 18-55) who want to take part in this type of project should apply to the Red Crescent blood center and say that they want to be a donor."