It was a celebratory moment, in more ways than one. Kalina Martel and her teammates on the EVO travel softball team had just won their final summer tournament, and as the middle schoolers hugged and high-fived on the diamond, a steady stream of bubbles rose above them — courtesy of Kalina’s then-two-year-old brother Kole.
Kole was doing some celebrating of his own. After treatment for the rare blood disorders myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS) and monosomy 7 that included chemotherapy, a stem cell transplant, and 16 months of isolation while his new immune system strengthened, he felt well enough to seek out fun anywhere possible.
At this moment, a sweltering summer day in 2025, that meant joining the on-field festivities and blasting his bubble gun.
The EVO team welcomed the intrusion. Like the girls on Kalina’s other school and travel teams, they had embraced Kole as their number one fan. They admired his resilience in dealing with numerous medical challenges and loved his infectious enthusiasm and ever-present smile.
“He’s loud and happy, cheering on from the dugout or behind the fence and yelling out the names of girls he knows,” Kalina, 14, explains Kole’s typical game-day routine. “Kole just brings the energy, and that gives all of us energy.”
For the Martel family, which includes parents Courtney and Steve, Kole’s zest for life despite his health issues has been a source of strength since his Oct. 11, 2023 diagnosis – 11 days before his first birthday. Doctors in the Bone Marrow Failure and MDS Program at Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center told the Martels then that Kole would need to be isolated from everyone outside his immediate family due to his weakened immune system, so they got creative.
“I’m a big party planner, and every year Kalina’s parties have a theme,” says Courtney. “The theme for Kole’s first was going to be ‘One Happy Dude’ because he’s always happy. We had to do it outside, with him sitting in his high-chair and our family all around him on the lawn. Other people drove by and waved. He was still happy!”
Despite treatment-related side effects such as breathing problems and extreme lethargy that have resulted in numerous MRIs, spinal taps, and blood tests since his successful December 2023 transplant, Kole, now three, has kept on smiling – and is starting to enjoy more activities of his own like beach trips, riding his balance bike, and playing tee-ball.
“Because of how young Kole was when he was diagnosed, every day is a great day,” explains his father, Steve. “That’s really helped us as a family. When we look at him, and how happy he is, how can we not be happy, too?”
An unexpected turn
Kole was a healthy, thriving newborn, so it came as a shock to the Martels when they learned at his six-month wellness exam that his body was not producing neutrophils — the white blood cells needed to fight off bacterial and fungal infections. Their pediatrician referred them to a hematologist near their Central Massachusetts home for more tests.
“All his other bloodwork was normal, and the hematologist told us Kole probably had autoimmune neutropenia, a newborn blood disorder that kids grow out of on their own,” recalls his mother, Courtney. “We came back for our nine-month checkup, and the neutrophils still weren’t growing, but the hematologist said not to worry.”
When Kole began developing random fevers, which twice landed him in the hospital for 48-hour antibiotic infusions, the Martels were told these were a normal occurrence for babies with autoimmune neutropenia. After Kole’s temperature shot up a third time, however, the hematologist ordered a bone marrow biopsy to rule out cancer.
“He was in the hospital for a week for the biopsy, and after he was released, they told us again there was nothing to worry about,” says Courtney. “I brought Kole to his next wellness exam, and they had him in back longer than normal. Then the hematologist came out and said to me, ‘I’m so sorry, it’s honestly not what I expected. Kole has cancer, and you’re being referred to Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s on Monday.’”
As Courtney and Steve learned more about Kole’s diagnosis, they realized just how unique his situation was. MDS is a disease predominantly found in patients aged 60 and older, and impacts just four in one million children; Monosomy 7 is nearly as rare in pediatric patients. The clinicians they met with at Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s, led by Grant Rowe, MD, PhD, Leslie Lehmann, MD, and pediatric hematology/oncology fellow Michael Gundry, MD, PhD, assured them that no matter how rare Kole’s condition was, they knew how to treat it.
“We were nervous when we first started coming in for treatment, but they did so much to calm our nerves,” says Steve. “It was clear they were experts in this type of disease, and from the start they were there for our entire family, assuring us that we would get through this together.”
The first major step in Kole’s treatment, the doctors explained, would be intensive chemotherapy to prepare him for a life-saving stem cell transplant – as his MDS and Monosomy 7 were in the beginning stages of developing into leukemia. He was not allowed to play with other children, to protect him from infection, and Kalina could not have friends over the house either unless they stayed outside.
“The two of us spent a lot of time playing catch, or he’d try and help me with my makeup,” Kalina recalls with a laugh.
Playdates and positivity
This remained the case for the next 16 months of near-total isolation, through Kole’s stem cell transplant three days after Christmas 2023 and numerous hospitalizations. He met Santa Claus for the first time in Dana-Farber’s Jimmy Fund Clinic, where he went for outpatient treatment weekly at first, but soon every two weeks and then monthly. Although his fragile new immune system restricted him from being near other kids in the clinic’s playroom, the smile never left his face.
“A couple months ago, somebody asked Kole what his favorite place was, and he said the Jimmy Fund Clinic,” recalls Courtney. “They make it fun so that every child feels comfortable.”
As Kole continued to grow stronger, so did his bond with the big sister he calls “Sissy.” Because Kalina’s softball games were played outside, they were safe for him to attend. In addition to the big summer 2025 tournament win, he was twice on hand when she hit home runs. And when treatment at the Jimmy Fund Clinic or inpatient stays at Boston Children’s Hospital kept Kole from the field, he still watched Kalina’s games live through video streams from his hospital bed or infusion chair.
These days, with his isolation period finished, a new world is opening up to Kole. He has started having playdates with other preschoolers, and in early 2026 even attended his first professional hockey game. There he won over members of the Providence Bruins with his trademark grin, just as he did the girls on Kalina’s middle- school basketball team. She jokes that if she ever ran low on water, Kole quickly showed up at the bench with a fresh bottle. She’s now paying him back by helping him with his tee-ball swing.
Kole’s clinic visits are now once every two months, and his post-transplant medical team — led by Malika Kapadia, MD — is confident about his prognosis moving forward. One thing is certain: Kole is still one happy dude.
“Kole has shown remarkable resilience and strength throughout his journey,” says Kapadia. “He is truly a fighter, facing each challenge with courage and determination. His parents and sister are his greatest champions, providing unwavering love and support every step of the way. It has been an honor and a privilege to know this family and to care for him.”