Michael DeMasi Jr.’s twin brothers spent their first four months on Earth in the hospital, but all that changed when Michael realized he could do something to help.
Michael’s brothers, Santino (Sonny) and Giovanni, were born at the Philadelphia Children’s Hospital in October with a rare immune disorder, chronic granulomatous disease, and in need of a bone marrow transplant. According to a Washington Post story, when Michael found out he was a match, he eagerly wanted to donate his marrow to “save my baby brothers.”
When asked why he wanted to do the transplant. DeMasi told the Post it was because “I’m a superhero!”
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Michael’s mother, Robin Ponwall, has documented her family’s journey on Facebook. Nearly two months after the procedure, the Post reports that the twins were discharged from the hospital.
Ponwall posted a video to commemorate the occasion, which shows the three boys together after the transplant — the twins in carriers and Michael in the middle — when the second-oldest DeMasi boy told the camera “it’s time to go home,” with a Superman big brother shirt and a big smile.
“Not all heroes wear capes, but he does!!!!!!!!!!!!! Michael is a real life super hero & I could not be any more proud,” said Ponwall in a Facebook post.
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Individuals who suffer from chronic granulomatous do not have properly functioning immune systems, meaning that something as simple as the common cold could turn into a serious, life-threatening illness.
The DeMasi family is no stranger to this illness as their eldest son Dominick was diagnosed just a week after his birth. He was put on a transplant list and received stem cells from the umbilical cord of a donor. His mother told the Post that he’s now considered cured.
When it came time to make the decision, Ponwall says she and her finance, Michael DeMasi, were very straightforward with their son about the process, and the risks.
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“We were straight up — ‘It’s going to be a big needle going into your back, bud,’ ” Pownall said she told him. “We asked him, ‘Do you want to do this? If you’re scared, you don’t have to.”
Doctors told the couple that following the extraction, Michael could experience complications including pain and soreness following the procedure. Despite this, the four-year-old was keen to go through with it, and fancied himself a “superhero.”
Casey Ponwall created a GoFundMe page to help her sister Robin’s family get back on their feet following the twins’ months-long recovery in hospital. The page has raised US$30,860 of its US$50,000 goal so far.
Casey Ponwall posted an update to the page after the family discovered that Michael was a match.
The DeMasis moved into their new home at the beginning of May, and the twins have since been brought home to be with their family.
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