Dr. Nick Mondek, a Los Angeles-area physician, is battling acute myeloid leukemia and recently received a lifesaving stem cell transplant from his 10-year-old son, Stephen. The donation made Stephen the youngest-ever stem cell donor at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.
Nick returned home on August 16, just in time to watch the final inning of his son’s Little League game. “I felt good helping my dad, and it felt good to have him home,” Stephen said.
A Rare and Brave Donation
Pediatric specialist Dr. Hoyoung Chung described the case as exceptionally rare, praising Stephen’s bravery. The hospital’s team carefully managed the donation process to ensure the young boy’s safety.
Nick had previously gone into remission after a transplant from his brother, but his cancer returned in April. Traditional donor searches, including the National Bone Marrow Registry, failed to yield a match. That’s when doctors considered whether his son could be a viable donor.
Why a Half-Match Could Work
Children inherit half their DNA from each parent, making Stephen a half-match for his father. According to Dr. Ronald Paquette, director of Cedars-Sinai’s Stem Cell and Bone Marrow Transplant Program, a half-matched immune system might be more aggressive in recognizing and destroying leukemia cells than a fully matched sibling donor.
After testing confirmed compatibility, Stephen was prepared for the procedure.
The Donation Process
In July, Stephen was placed under anesthesia while a catheter was inserted into his neck vein. For six hours, his blood was cycled through a centrifuge to collect stem cells.
Nick, an anesthesiologist himself, admitted the toughest part was watching his son under anesthesia: “During the whole process that I’ve gone through, those 60 minutes when Stephen was asleep were probably the toughest.”
A week later, Nick received Stephen’s stem cells after undergoing six days of chemotherapy to clear his immune system. Doctors referred to transplant day as a “stem cell birthday,” marking the rebirth of Nick’s immune defenses.
Hope for the Future
Following two weeks in the hospital for recovery, Nick is now at home. Doctors caution it could take a year or more to know whether the transplant will keep the leukemia from returning.
Still, Nick is hopeful: “Everything lined up for this. Dr. Paquette said the perfect donor for me would be someone who’s young and healthy and a 50% match, and we found him. He was right here in front of us.”
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