Patient, donor celebrate match

BURLINGTON, Wash. – Kaydee Curbow’s family considers Melissa Behrmann an angel – even if she doesn’t have wings.

The 21-year-old college student donated the bone marrow that helped save Curbow’s life.

The 13-year-old had been diagnosed with leukemia in July 2010 and was undergoing treatment at Seattle Children’s Hospital.

Behrmann met Curbow and her family for the first time last month, flying to Washington from her native Michigan.

“Turn around, I want to see your wings,” Debbie Schwarz, Curbow’s aunt, said she told Behrmann upon meeting her. “She’s pretty special,” she added, as Behrmann sat on the couch in the Curbows’ home, surrounded by her grateful friends and family, who celebrated the visit with cake and punch. They passed around a guestbook, scribbling messages for Behrmann to take home.

“It was fun, really exciting,” Curbow said about meeting her donor. “It’s like when you’re nervous or something … butterflies in your stomach.”

From Sault Sainte Marie, Mich., which sits on the northeastern end of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, Behrmann was a 10-point match for Curbow – a more perfect match to Curbow’s bone marrow than even her own brothers.

Behrmann had taken five minutes to get a cheek swab done at a kiosk during a blood drive, and she didn’t expect to be chosen as a match for someone. It’s about a 1-in-200 chance of getting a phone call about a match, she said.

As it turns out, she received two phone calls – one for Curbow.

After a blood test confirming the match, Behrmann donated during a surgery in December 2010.

“I guess, in a way, how could I not?” she said of donating.

Doctors inserted a needle into her hip and extracted a quart of marrow. A tattoo she had inked on hurt more, she insisted.

“Every morning I wake up and wonder how she’s doing,” Behrmann said.

Behrmann’s marrow, now in Curbow, is “working well, really well,” Curbow said. After extensive treatments and the transplant, her cancer is now in remission.

“It’s kind of like you’re automatically family, even though we didn’t know each other,” Behrmann said.

They spent about a week together at the local sights.

Behrmann emphasized how easy it is to register as a bone marrow donor – and how important it can be for someone else. Curbow, her family and friends are grateful Behrmann took the time.

“It’s amazing to know that someone would do that for me,” Curbow said.

For Behrmann, the donation was “nothing big” on her part. She’s always believed in doing nice things.

“You spend five minutes and that’s it,” she said. “You can go and save someone’s life.”