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Miracle match: Orlando girl receives life-saving transplant

Chloe Bella diagnosed with JMML earlier this year

An Orlando girl with a rare form of cancer who recently found a miracle match underwent a life-saving blood transfusion Friday.

Chloe Bella Carvalho received a blood stem cell transplant that will help her body recover from the high-dose chemotherapy needed to treat her juvenile myelomonocytic leukemia, also known as JMML.

Prior to the transplant, Chloe’s mom, Nayara Hermes, posted on social media that the process has been a long journey.

In a post translated from Portuguese to English, Hermes represented her daughter, writing, “Today I receive my new marrow, new cells, new life (and) hope! Words are very little to thank the person who does not know me and is donating a part of (themselves) so I can be saved, live and grow."

The post went on to thank everyone for their love and support while asking for prayers because “the next few days will be challenging and decisive.”

Chloe was diagnosed with JMML earlier this year after her stomach began expanding and she stopped acting like herself. About one or two children out of every 1 million are diagnosed with JMML each year, according to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

Hermes said earlier this year that she’s looking forward to her daughter’s future.

“I want to see her graduating. I want to see her dancing ballet. I want to see her getting married,” Hermes said.

Mauricio Murillo, a supervisor at a recruitment center for Be the Match, said that Chloe had about a 46 percent chance of finding a match. After News 6 aired a story about Chloe, 200 people signed up to be a part of the registry through a link on ClickOrlando.com.

To register for Be the Match and potentially save a life, click here.

If you’d like to join the family’s push and help save the lives of others, you can also text SaveBella to 61474. You can visit their website at join.bethematch.org/savebella


About the Authors
Daniel Dahm headshot

Daniel started with WKMG-TV in 2000 and became the digital content manager in 2009. When he's not working on ClickOrlando.com, Daniel likes to head to the beach or find a sporting event nearby.

Emmy-nominated journalist Kristin Cason joined the News 6 team in June 2016.

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