Dec. 21 will mark two years since 9-year-old Saniyah Joseph was stricken with aplastic anemia, a disease that affects her bone marrow functions. The condition kept Saniyah from living her life like a normal child. She often felt tired and had to undergo blood treatments. Today, her doctors consider her to be in remission, and she is back to enjoying life like a healthy 9-year-old.
“Things are going great for Saniyah,” her mother, Selina Hargrove Joseph, said. “We are very pleased with her progress.”
Saniyah has been off her immune suppressant medications for a year now. Her blood counts are normal, and she has become much more active, participating in gymnastics, singing in choir and partaking in church youth activities.
Saniyah was diagnosed with the disorder while living in Europe, where her father is stationed with the Army. Her mother grew up in Liberty County and went to Bradwell Institute. Saniyah’s maternal grandparents, Levan and Hattie Hargrove, still live in Liberty County.
“I am so happy that I was raised around people who rally around each other during difficult times,” Selina Hargrove Joseph said.
Although Saniyah is in remission, she is not completely cured from the disorder. She needs to receive a bone marrow transplant from a donor, someone who matches Saniyah’s tissue type and is willing to donate marrow.
Matches are found through organizations like Be the Match, which connects patients who have life-threatening blood cancers with people who are willing to donate bone marrow.
Several marrow drives have been conducted in Saniyah’s honor in the surrounding area over the past year. There also have been marrow drives held for her in Naples, Italy, as well as  Stuttgart, Ramstein and Weisbanden in Germany.
“The nurse from my school in Naples emailed me that her daughter was contacted as a possible donor (for Saniyah),” Selina Hargrove Joseph said. “They are so happy that their daughter may be able to save a life.”
Saniyah may be cured of the disease with the donor match in Naples.
Becoming a donor is not as hard as people may believe. Building awareness on how to become a donor is the first step, said Betty McCray, a friend and neighbor of the Hargrove family.
Volunteers can be added to a donor registry by attending a marrow drive, where a professional will swab the inside part of the volunteer’s mouth. The swab will be sent to a lab for DNA testing to see if it matches a patient in need. The whole process is free for the volunteer.
A website was set up for Saniyah last year for supporters to make donations to help pay for the Joseph family’s medical bills. Today, the family is $739.17 away from the $10,000 goal.
“We hope to reach our goal by the end of the year,” Selina Hargrove Joseph said. “We are so grateful for everyone who supported Team Saniyah.”
For more information about Team Saniyah, go to www.bethematchfoundation.org/goto/TeamSaniyah.