DKMS donor Luis Miranda and DKMS patient and survivor Ezra Miller meet for the first time.
In August 2015 Ezra was diagnosed with Leukemia – a day Ezra’s mother will never forget. Ezra needed a bone marrow transplant to survive.
After losing his sister in an accident, Luis knew immediately he would say yes when DKMS called him as a bone marrow donor. Luis recalled, “when an opportunity comes to do something for someone that you can do, it is amazing.”
Luis, who is originally from Guatemala, said his upbringing in an undocumented immigrant household had a lot to do with his decision to help a stranger in his time of need.
“Growing up in an undocumented family with very little resources, I struggled,” he said. “I had dreams, I had all these things I wanted to do, but we just didn’t have much. Simple things like health care, we just didn’t have access to,” he explained. “I’ve been able to beat the odds because strangers were able to help us out.”
Ezra Miller, who is now in remission from his leukemia, was able to meet the man who saved his life, 29-year-old Luis Miranda. Not only did Ezra find a second chance at life – he also found a big brother. As Luis says, “he is my little brother now, he is my blood now.”
Additional info: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/boy-fighting-cancer-grateful-bone-marrow-donor-saved-article-1.3111041