The First Person Ever Cured of Sickle Cell

As Kimberlin cradles her baby granddaughter, singing soft lullabies, she holds more than just a child, she holds a future she once couldn't imagine having. At age 8, while battling excruciating sickle cell pain crises that left her writhing in hospital beds every other week, she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia. But what seemed like a devastating blow became her miracle.

A bone marrow transplant at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital not only cured her cancer but unexpectedly eliminated her sickle cell disease too—making her the first person in the world to be cured of this debilitating blood disorder. Those sickle-shaped cells that once stole her childhood disappeared forever.

Four decades later, Kimberlin has lived the life once beyond her reach—college graduate, teacher, wife of 19 years, mother of three, and now, grandmother. "I've had the joy of having an amazing partner, being a mother... and none of it could have happened without St. Jude," she says. "That's the simple truth."