There are no perfect matches within the direct family circle. The search is now being widened to less closely connected relatives. If no match is found within the family, the national registry of bone marrow donors will be scanned. Jean Luc s parents have been told it could take between one and four months to find a match. The sooner this is done the better the chances he has, says his mother.
Time is important because among the organs affected by the disease is the brain.
If successful, the transplant will result in Jean Luc s body producing the enzyme now missing. It will give the little boy back his life, but it is not a perfect cure. For reasons researchers haven t yet been able to determine, the transplant doesn t appear able to stop the disease s effect on bones, so the chances are that Jean Luc may experience bone deformities as he ages. His mom is already anticipating the possibility of hip surgeries to correct future displacements and ponders the possibility that there may be a wheelchair in his future. But that she s talking about a future for Jean Luc is, in itself, something of a miracle.