Hayden Schiller

Type of Donation:          osteochondral allograft recipient

Age and Location:          Age 20

Donation Date:             2/15/2015

Sponsor:                   Honored by Community Tissue Services

HAYDEN’S STORY

Hayden Schiller is a kind student from Vancouver, WA, who was diagnosis with AML Leukemia. Hayden had been graduated high school for two weeks before finding out he had a very rare, aggressive, and advanced form of leukemia. In June of 2020, he woke up with a blind spot in his left eye, went to the hospital, was diagnosed, rushed to OHSU and spent the next 4 months in the hospital.

After many very aggressive chemotherapy treatments and full body radiation, he got a stem cell transplant. His donor was from his brother. Just a couple days after the transplant, Hayden developed a staph infection in his PICC line that went straight to his heart. This made Hayden septic and caused all major organs to fail. He was in the cardiac ICU with heart, kidney, liver failure and pulmonary edema, he was dying. To stop the bleeding in his lungs, the doctors had to give him massive amounts of steroids, no one knew what that amount of steroids would do to his body but without it he wouldn’t make it. He pulled through, slowly his organs improved, and the stem cell transplant was a success, remission! A couple months later he started to have a lot of pain in both of his knees, he soon wouldn’t be able to walk, he was diagnosed with a very advanced form of osteonecrosis in both legs, his bones were dying and crumbling apart. He needed an osteochondral allograft transplant in both knees; rebuilding his knees with donor bone grafts and transplanting cartilage plugs. He needed to wait for his disease to reach its maximum, they had to get as bad as they could get. After being bone on bone for months, he was able to have both osteochondral allograft transplant. In March of 2021 he would have his first knee surgery and would be able to walk and can put pressure on it without much pain. His second knee surgery was in June 2021. The whole experience humbled Hayden and his family, it made them appreciate life more and to take in every little moment. Hayden had separate anonymous donors for each leg. The knee surgeries made a remarkable difference, he can now start to walk again. Hayden is grateful to be alive and to be able to walk and it wouldn’t be possible without his bone donors. This made him to have a different perspective on life and to appreciate every event in his life. Hayden and his family are honored to be part of this event and to show their gratitude towards the donor’s families and all donors, from stem cell, blood, plasma, and especially bone, donations have touched every part of his life.