Emma Rae Alvarado Emma'sDay(notafundraiser)

Emma Rae Alvarado was born December 5th 2018. She was premature due to pregnancy complications at 34 weeks and weighed 5lbs 12oz. Since her birth she has faced a myriad of challenges including most notably the lack of a thymus gland. A gland located above your heart which is responsible for developing tcells in your body enabling you to fight off infection effectively. She unfortunately as a result can not fight off infection and is susceptible to any infection she comes in contact with. Thankfully she has been getting cared for at CHOC Children's in Orange County where we have been able to visit and spend days and nights at her bedside. Her team of Drs. and specialists are working towards figuring out the safest method of correction which at this point seems to be a full thymus transplant. A procedure in which thymic tissue is sliced from a donor during surgery, tested and monitored in a lab before being implanted into Emma's legs. If done successfully Emma's body will receive the thymic tissue allowing her to develop a fully functional immune system. This procedure is only done at one place in the states, Duke University in North Carolina. As she awaits her transplant we will be working towards bringing her home. For now her current non functional tcells are acting inappropriately and causing complications with her skin, lungs and other organs. She is receiving immunal suppression treatments to address this issue. God has blessed her with a fighting spirit, a loving family and the support and prayers of you and anybody reading this. Feel free to ask questions as we use the site to keep all those concerned updated. Thank you for caring about our baby girl, God is good and we believe his hand is upon us.