Pregnant Woman Fighting Leukemia Finds a Perfect Bone Marrow Match After Making Desperate Plea

Joelle Goldstein
Updated
Woman Pregnant with Twins, Fighting Leukemia Finds Bone Marrow Match

Susie Rabaca, the pregnant woman battling leukemia who made a desperate plea for a bone marrow donor, has finally found her perfect match.

Rabaca, 36, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of acute myeloid leukemia just a few months into carrying her twins and required a bone marrow transplant in order to survive.

With no match to be found on the registry and just days until she is expected to give birth, the mother did everything she could to try to find a person who could save her life.

Her plight struck a chord with thousands who either shared her story or went and got tested to see if they were a match and, she revealed to NBC Nightly News on Wednesday, that perfect person which just the right genetic makeup has been found.

“Oh my god, to me it’s beyond amazing… joy and happiness, it really is,” she told NBC News. “It’s so exciting, it’s the best Christmas gift.”

While more testing is needed before doctors can do the procedure, Rabaca can now focus on her twins’ impending arrival and hopes to undergo the transplant after their birth.

RELATED: Woman Pregnant with Twins and Fighting Leukemia Makes Desperate Plea for Bone Marrow Donor

Rabaca’s desperate search began as because of the severity of her cancer — which starts in the bone marrow and often moves to the blood, according to the American Cancer Society — she needed someone with a 100 percent match. The person needed to be, like the expectant mom, half-Latino and half-Caucasian.

Despite 30 million people registered on the worldwide registry, the Southern California local did not have a single match with similar DNA or ancestry.

RELATED VIDEO: WATCH: This 25-Year-Old Survived a Bone Marrow Transplant After Helping Over 50 Others Find Their Own Treatments

With the help of her 4-year-old daughter, Riley, and even country superstar, Carrie Underwood — who retweeted her story — more than 50,000 people heard Rabaca’s plea and signed up on the “Be The Match” registry over the past seven days, reports NBC News.

According to the outlet, it was a record-breaking weekend.