Toddler needs bone marrow donation to cure rare leukemia

Family and friends, even perfect strangers went out to the Rochester airport Thursday to help out a young Gates boy. 2-year-old Brandon Polito, was diagnosed in July with Juvenile Myelomonocytic Leukemia, a rare childhood illness.

The only cure is a bone marrow transplant. That's why his family held a bone marrow drive to add new donors to the registry and hopefully find a match. "He runs around like a little jack rabbit sometimes and you would never know but behind the scenes, he's got this rare disease," says Brandon's dad, Anthony Polito.

Brandon's situation has inspired his family and friends to educate the public about the need for more potential bone marrow donors to sign up with the national registry and potentially help other families that are suffering through the same struggle of trying to find a suitable bone marrow donor. "We want our son's situation to create awareness of this problem and to inspire people to help save lives," explains mom Nicole Polito.
 
Brandon is scheduled for a transplant at Strong Memorial Hospital at the end of September even though a perfect match has not been found. Click here for more information on bone marrow donation.