3-year-old Ontario girl in urgent need of rare mixed-ethnicity stem-cell donor

Three-year-old Leia Fallico’s life depends on a stem-cell donation — the only cure for a rare genetic disorder that’s causing her bone marrow to fail.

But of the 40 million registered donors worldwide, not a single one was a perfect match for Leia this spring.

“Not even one,” said Leia’s mother Shonna Fallico. 

Leia suffers from dyskeratosis congenita, which impairs the bone marrow’s ability to create blood cells. A severe case can lead to leukemia and other serious illnesses later in life.

The challenge is that she is of mixed ethnicity, Persian and European, which means she likely needs a donor with a similar background, who has a better