Sixteen-year-old Andie Morrison is no stranger to London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC) and Children’s Hospital.
Andie was born with Diamond Blackfan Anemia (DBA), a rare bone marrow failure which had her fighting for her life at the early age of nine weeks old.
Children with DBA have bone marrow that does not make enough red blood cells. A part of red blood cells called hemoglobin carries oxygen to the whole body and when the number of red blood cells is low, anemia develops, and the body cannot work at a normal pace.
Throughout her journey, Andie has received more than 240 blood transfusions and this past June she underwent a bone marrow transplant which has successfully allowed her body, for the first time in her life, to create enough red blood cells on its own.
“I grew up in the hospital and I feel medical anatomy is cool,” says Andie Morrison. “I learned about red blood cells when I was only five years old, and since then, I always want to learn more about medicine, research, and what is happening within my own body.”
Andie still requires close monitoring, which is done several times a month at London Health Sciences Centre. Some of that monitoring is through the Medical Radiologist Technologist (MRT) team who have worked very closely with Andie. Throughout her life she has had several X-Rays, Ultrasounds, CTs, MRIs and Interventional Radiology exams.
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