Her name is Katelynn. Junior in high school. Third-year starter for her volleyball team, and a good one at that. She has it made… except for one thing.
She suffers from a rare disease known as aplastic anemia.
Before getting a diagnosis, everything had been rather normal for Katelynn—outside the typical tiredness of a busy highschooler. There was college to think about. Practice to attend. Homework to finish. Exams to study for.
Still, she seemed to be getting more and more tired than usual, The Pearland Journal reports. She went to the doctor to have blood tests, not expecting anything too out of the norm. And then the results came back. Her platelets counts had dipped dramatically. They were at 0.
Katelynn was hospitalized, and the doctors feared leukemia.
Those fears were put to rest when Katelynn was, instead, diagnosed with aplastic anemia. Her life turned upside down.
On top of conducting the normal business of a teenage girl, Katelynn and her family have had to adjust their schedule for treatment, seeing doctors, having tests, and everything else that comes with having a rare disease.
Katelynn, however, has maintained a very positive attitude, still even attending volleyball games to cheer on her team from the sideline.
Still, Katelynn must remain at home for the majority of her day because her immune system has been subdued by suppressants, which must be quite a change for someone who was once so involved.
Luckily, Katelynn has some amazing support—from her family and her volleyball team.
They have made shirts in her honor, as well as a GoFundMe page to raise money for the medical finances. Katelynn’s family hopes to find a bone marrow donor soon so that she can have a transplant and move on with her recovery.
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