Okotoks, Alta., family faces limited options as two young children battle rare genetic disorder
A young Okotoks, Alta., family is preparing for a long year ahead, as the first of their two children begins a stem cell transplant they hope will prolong her life.
Stella, 4, and Max, 2, have a genetic metabolic disorder that affects as few as one in 300,000 children.
With Morquio syndrome, the body does not produce an enzyme needed to clear waste sugars from the system, which leads to progressive deformities of the skeleton.
Up to 70 per cent of affected people are in a wheelchair by their teens.
Most will die between 30 and 40 years old.
Stella, a busy, outgoing four-year-old, will first go through a week of chemotherapy starting in early May, followed by a bone marrow stem cell transplant that could help her body begin to produce that critical enzyme on its own.
Mom Brittny Beet says the family is hopeful the treatment will improve her daughter's quality of life in the years to come.
The family has set up a GoFundMe to help cover bills and travel for medical appointments.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Guilty: Trump becomes first former U.S. president convicted of felony crimes
Donald Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes Thursday as a New York jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex.
Can Trump come to Canada now that he's a convicted felon?
A Canadian immigration lawyer says now that Donald Trump is a convicted felon, he is technically barred from crossing the border into Canada.
Montreal tech billionaire charged with several sex offences
Robert Miller was charged Thursday with several sexual assault charges after Montreal police reopened an investigation into the tech billionaire.
Police: 3 killed, including suspected gunman, in Minneapolis shooting
Three people, including the suspected gunman, are dead after a shooting Thursday at a Minneapolis apartment complex, police said.
'Why didn't they stop?' Mom asks of driver in hit-and-run crash that killed son
The mother of a 13-year-old boy who was killed in a hit-and-run in Edmonton is begging the driver to come forward.
The northern lights are returning to night skies across Canada this Friday
If you missed the brilliant displays of the aurora borealis over North America on May 10, you may have another chance to see them on Friday night.
A pair enjoyed pricey meals and bolted when it was time to pay. Their dine and dash ended in jail
A Welsh couple who dined out on pricey meals and bolted when the bill came is now paying the price, behind bars.
$400K in damages for B.C. woman who had unnecessary mastectomy was 'inordinately high,' court finds
A jury's award of $400,000 to a woman who had a mastectomy after being misdiagnosed with breast cancer has been substantially reduced by B.C.'s highest court, which found the damages were "wholly disproportionate."