Family of mom who died waiting for bone marrow transplant advocating for others to join donor registry

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A bone marrow transplant could have been the lifeline a Louisville Mom needed while battling cancer. But even after her death, her siblings hope for a sliver lining.

Julie Tyrrell died on Monday at 42.

"She was the strongest person I had ever met," said Lisa Lucas, Tyrrell's older sister.

Tyrrell was a wife and mom to two boys, ages 14 and 2.

"They were her world," said James Polk, Tyrrell's older brother.

Since 2019, Tyrrell dealt with some of the highest of highs, and the lowest of lows.

In 2019, doctors found cancerous tumors in her chest called Thymoma. Following chemotherapy and radiation treatment, a doctor in Houston was able to remove the tumors.

However, the chemotherapy and radiation treatment put Tyrrell at a high risk to develop leukemia, and also make it difficult to have any more children.

At a six-month check-up, doctors told Tyrrell she was pregnant with her second son.

Following the birth of her son, Tyrrell was diagnosed with leukemia, and would eventually enter remission.

In September of 2022, however, traces of leukemia appeared in her bloodwork, and doctors decided it would be best to undergo a bone marrow transplant.

Unfortunately, neither Lucas nor Polk were a match to donate to their baby sister.

In December, the pair helped organize a bone marrow drive, encouraging friends to register with the national marrow donor program, Be The Match.

"The registry didn't show any matches for her either," Polk said.

On Christmas Day, Tyrell was hospitalized with an infection and later died, still waiting for her match.

Her siblings are thankful for the time spent with their sister this Christmas Eve, where she took individual pictures with almost everybody at the party, including her sons. The pair even joked about Tyrrell mustering up enough strength to help her family get their car back on the road after sliding off due to icy roads.

But even in the time of grief and reflection, the siblings are working to spread the word to become a bone marrow donor.

"For our sister it's not going to help, but it's definitely going to help somebody," Polk said. "We're just hoping more people, young people, can get on the registry."

Potential donors can be male or female, but in this case age matters. They must be between the ages of 18 and 40. Be The Match said donors between the ages of 18 and 35 lead to its most successful transplants.

To become part of the registry, people can sign up online. They will receive a cheek swab kit in the mail, and send back the sample.

“If we can save anybody from the pain we’re going through, not only the pain we’re going through emotionally, but the pain she went through physically too," Lucas said.

If you'd like to sign up on the national registry, you can do so by clicking here.

If you would like to support Tyrrell's immediate family, click here.