Help for Claire’s Bone Marrow Transplant Miracle

My name is Doug Farrar, and I'm hosting this GoFundMe for my stepdaughter Claire's bone marrow transplant.

Claire is a sensitive, vibrant, strong 27-year-old who means so much to so many. She has been struggling with low platelet counts (platelets control bleeding in our bodies), and after years of tests, Claire has been diagnosed with bone marrow failure and Aplastic Anemia, a rare and serious blood disorder. Aplastic Anemia prevents Claire’s body from making enough blood cells and platelets. Claire has been at increased risk for bleeding, severe infections, and heart issues.

A bone marrow transplant is the only cure, and Claire will go forward with the bone marrow transplant. She has a donor and a date (December 29, 2023) to begin the process, and the good news is that she has a very good chance for a full recovery. Claire is a pediatric medical assistant, and she's working six days a week to make ends meet as she confronts this reality. She will work right up to the procedure, because that's who she is.

The difficult part of the story is how the bone marrow transplant process affects a person’s life. Claire will be an inpatient for a month at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center and the University of Washington Medical Center, and then, she’ll have three more months of outpatient care in which she will essentially be quarantined. The reason for this is that when you destroy a person’s existing bone marrow with chemotherapy, and then inject new bone marrow, that person will be severely immuno-compromised for months. Claire will be exhausted through this process, and she will need full-time care – which her partner Grace, her mother Laura, and I – will provide.

Because of this, we are asking for your help in covering Claire’s expenses – rent, food, and everything else – through her months-long journey to what will likely be a full recovery and a normal life. She is also already thousands of dollars in medical debt before these life-saving procedures even begin. She does have insurance through her work, but that only covers so much - and in some cases, it doesn't cover anything at all.

Claire’s journey is dire in the short term, but we have much hope, and with her strength, your help, and her village, Claire will be able to make it through this.