As a toddler, Makenzie was diagnosed with a rare disorder that left her body with no natural immunity. At age 2, a bone marrow transplant at her local hospital should have saved her life, but instead, three years later she contracted cancer from her donor’s cells. Makenzie needed the most advanced care and expertise to beat the odds.

A second opinion saved Makenzie’s life.

Cincinnati Children’s world-renowned team of experts used their deep experience, and a personalized, innovative treatment not found elsewhere, to give Makenzie a second chance at life.

Little Makenzie was in for the fight of her life. In addition to her rare immune deficiency disorder and cancer, she only had one functioning kidney, which made treatment very risky.

Luckily, Cincinnati Children’s has an entire team of globally recognized experts who specialize in complex immune diseases and preserving kidney function, including the #1 cancer program in the nation. Together they pioneered an innovative, curative approach using an adult medicine tailored precisely for Makenzie. Their specialized experience also allowed them to act with lightning speed when her body didn’t accept its second bone marrow transplant. They quickly enlisted her mom as a donor and saved her life.

Today, Makenzie is a teenager and seven years cancer-free. She’s living her very best life and nothing’s holding her back.

Why Makenzie's Family Chose Cincinnati Children's

Makenzie’s family lives four hours away in northwestern Indiana. Her parents chose to travel to Cincinnati Children’s, just as families and patients do from all 50 states and dozens of countries each year. Here’s why:

Our doctors are global leaders.

Our specialists are internationally renowned for their expertise, spanning from the most common to the rarest pediatric health conditions. This enables them to take on a higher volume of medically complex cases than other children’s hospitals, drawing on this unmatched experience to deliver exceptional care.

Our expertise builds upon itself, and each patient makes us even better. Makenzie’s lead doctor had a previous patient with the same immune deficiency and cancer. She knew exactly how to treat Makenzie. Plus, Makenzie’s kidney doctor sub-specializes in saving kidney function for kids with a bone marrow transplant—a unique expertise.

Innovation drives our care.

Our doctors and researchers develop breakthrough medical innovations that advance the knowledge and treatment of pediatric medicine. These advanced treatments are often only available at Cincinnati Children’s. Every day, we use those innovations to create unique solutions and provide the best possible outcomes for the most challenging medical conditions.

Makenzie directly benefited from Cincinnati Children’s innovation. Our Bone Marrow Transplant team helped develop stem cell transplant procedures that are the standard of care in 240+ cancer centers throughout North America.

Our top-ranked teams work together.

Makenzie benefited from a wealth of expertise, including the nation’s #1 cancer team for three years in a row, a top 10 nephrology team, our leading-edge pharmacology program and many other specialists. These doctors are on the same team. They constantly communicate with each other and make decisions together. This gives families the confidence and hope that only comes from having a team of top experts caring for their child.

That collaboration is one of the many reasons why Cincinnati Children’s has proudly been one of the top-ranked children’s hospitals in the nation by U.S. News & World Report for more than 15 years.

Parents are partners in care.

Our providers actively engage parents and caregivers. We involve and support them in every step of care. That’s why Makenzie’s mom fondly recalls the support she personally received from their child life specialist. It’s also why more than 90% of patients and families rate us 9 or 10 out of 10 for their patient experience.

After all, we believe a child’s story is so much bigger than their diagnosis, no matter how common or rare. Because helping all children live their best possible life is at the center of everything we do. 

For remarkable outcomes, Cincinnati Children’s is the one.