A Difficult Start to Life

Just five days after birth in May 2020, Keke showed severe signs of anemia. After multiple hospital visits, she was diagnosed with congenital pure red cell aplasia (PRCA), a rare blood disorder requiring long-term care.

For the next four years, her life revolved around regular blood transfusions and steroid treatment.

Despite her parents’ best efforts, Keke remained unusually small and thin, and the frequent trips to the hospital became part of her childhood.

The increasing steroid doses gradually changed her appearance, affecting not only her body, but also her confidence.

 

Searching for Hope: A Mother’s Determination

Keke’s mother recalls the early struggle:

“When she was diagnosed, she was only three months old. She had even been admitted to the ICU because of severe anemia. We had no long-term plans then—just one hope: for Keke to grow up safely.”

They tried multiple treatments. Some worked briefly, but none brought lasting improvement.

 

Three Stages of Treatment

Before age one, Keke relied entirely on regular transfusions.

Each session brought short relief, but her underlying condition did not improve, and her transfusion dependence grew.

At around age one, doctors recommended steroid therapy. After eight months—just when the family’s hope was fading—her hemoglobin began to rise. It felt like a miracle.

But the medication regimen was challenging: monthly blood tests, nighttime dosing to maintain drug levels, and difficulty adding new supportive medications.

Despite their best efforts, after three years of therapy, Keke still required transfusions, and the steroids caused a pronounced “moon face.”

Her parents realized: Continuing this way was no longer sustainable. Transplantation became our only path forward.

 

A Life-Changing Decision: Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation

In the summer of 2025, Keke’s family turned to the GoBroad Chunfu Hematology & Oncology Institute（GoBroad Healthcare Group）.

With the support of its expert medical team, Keke underwent hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT)—a treatment that offered her the possibility of curing PRCA.

She received stem cells from her older sister on August 26, and successfully left the transplant isolation unit on September 22.

Those 30 days in the sterile unit became a period of physical and emotional transformation for the entire family.

 

Overcoming the Most Difficult Moments

During the first days in isolation, Keke experienced fever and diarrhea due to chemotherapy, making her irritable and uncomfortable.

Her mother remembers:

“The hardest part wasn’t the care itself—it was watching my child suffer and not being able to take the pain away.”

The medical team guided and supported her, helping her stay calm and learn how to care for Keke during treatment.

Day by day, Keke’s condition improved, giving her mother renewed confidence.

 

A Gradual Transformation After Transplant

More than a month after leaving the unit:

• Her “steroid face” disappeared
• Her cheeks became rosy
• She grew lively and cheerful again
• She stopped asking, “Why am I different from others?”

 

Her mother reflects:

“Only then did I realize how deeply anemia affected her—both physically and emotionally. I’m grateful that she was born at a time when medicine could give her a future. As long as we never give up, there is always hope.”