In January 2017, 9-year-old Sawyer was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a rare form of leukemia for a child, and one of the most difficult cancers to treat.
Sawyer’s parents were told that he only had a 20% chance of surviving his cancer, but Sawyer’s story doesn’t end there. Today, Sawyer is no longer battling AML thanks to the gift of life that Kevin Schwartzel, a 30-year-old who joined the Be The Match Donor Marrow Registry in 2011, was able to provide him.
In February 2017, Kevin received a call saying that he was a match for a little boy in Tennessee, and he didn’t hesitate to agree to donate his marrow. Sawyer received his blood and marrow transplant in May 2017 at the Sarah Cannon Pediatric Transplant & Cellular Therapy Program at Tristar Centennial in Nashville, Tennessee under the care of Dr. Haydar Frangoul. He has been in remission for the last 18 months.
Sawyer’s dad said that Kevin became a part of their family, and on September 22, 2018 in Nashville, Kevin surprised Sawyer, and the two met for the first time in person.
Watch Sawyer’s and Kevin’s very special reunion below.
9-year-old cancer survivor reunited with the man who saved his Life