Community Supports Naugatuck Student Awaiting Bone Marrow Transplant

NAUGATUCK, CT — In many ways, 13-year-old Luciana Calderon, of Naugatuck, is an outstanding community member.

An eighth grader and high honor student, she loves sports such as soccer and basketball, as well as drawing and spending time with her friends.

Her parents, Alejandro and Maria Calderon, described their daughter in a recent GoFundMe campaign as a kind girl who is loving toward everyone she knows; a selfless person with a big heart who cares about others.

Given this, it is no surprise the community has rallied around Calderon and her family after she was diagnosed with aplastic anemia in April.

According to the campaign, Calderon received the diagnosis after her family noticed a number of changes in her.

"[Luciana] had been tired, bruised easily and she was also dizzy and looked pale," her parents said in the fundraiser's description, "so we decided to take her for a check-up. She had some labs done, and that same day we had a call from her doctor saying that her counts were low and we needed to take her to Yale [New Haven Hospital] right away. Since then, Luciana's life change drastically; she became transfusion dependent."

After undergoing various treatments, it was determined Calderon would need a bone marrow transplant.

"With the bone marrow transplant, Luciana can live her everyday life again and do what she loves the most: playing soccer and basketball," the GoFundMe reads.

Shortly after Christmas, however, the family received news that Calderon's condition had drastically improved.

In an update posted to GoFundMe on Dec. 27, her parents shared that Calderon's bone marrow is currently producing 60 percent of cells. For comparison, her parents said their daughter's bone marrow was only producing 5 percent of cells when she began treatment in May.

"The doctors told us that is very rare for a patient to recover at the end of the treatment," the update reads.

Though her doctors have decided to put the transplant on hold for now, Calderon will still need a third bone marrow biopsy in February to determine whether she needs the transplant or not, her parents said.

The GoFundMe campaign was set up by the Calderon family to help alleviate some financial stress caused by the large number of medical bills accumulated since April.

As of Friday evening, the campaign has raised over $43,000 toward a $60,000 goal after receiving over 150 donations. Those who wish to donate can do so here.

"A month ago the doctors told us that she needed a transplant," Alejandro and Maria Calderon said, "that she was getting sicker and sicker each day, and now we are getting such wonderful news full of hope. Please keep praying for our girl. We believe in miracles."

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