Research that Benefits Children and Families—Uplifting Stories

One positive aspect of research can be the miracle of saving a child’s life.

Nine years also my friend gave birth to a beautiful healthy boy. Everything was normal at the hospital and for a few weeks after that. When her son was 3 weeks old he got sick and that is when it felt like the world was crashing down. Isaac continued being sick and could not fight the infection. It was soon found out that he was born with no immune system. The pattern of illness and antibiotics would go one for two and a half years. Doctors said that there was nothing they could do and eventually he would get an illness that antibiotics could not help and he would die. He was not expected to live past his third birthday. A few months after Isaac was three, doctors came to my friend with an option for an “experiment idea that could save his life, and his only chance.” Isaac became a research participant in the hopes it would save him and provide information for future help to other children. It was a long process, a lot of money needed to be raised. (2.2 million because insurance would not cover “an experiment”), and pain for Isaac to endure. In the end it was successful. Isaac has been healthy for 5 years and just got the official diagnosis of being cured. He is able to go to school and loves being with children his own age. Seeing the process first hand still has not cemented my feelings about research and children. However I am so thankful for the outcome of this research that I can think nothing but positive things about it.