Marissa Eve Ayala, a 23-year-old who became popular for her bone marrow donation to her sister two decades ago, has graduated from Cal State Long Beach with a degree in speech pathology. Ayala was conceived to provide her sister a life-saving bone marrow transplant.
"Well, what now is, I'm graduating from Cal State Long Beach," Ayala said. "I couldn't be happier and I'm making my own goals and setting my own aspirations. And, yes, even though I saved my sister's life and I'm so happy that she's here with us today, I have a separate life besides this story."
Ayala's sister, Anissa, was diagnosed with chronic myelogenous leukemia in 1988. Her parents in their mid 40's, Abe and Mary Ayala, unable to find a suitable donor, tried to have another baby, based on the fact that 1 out of 4 babies would be a good match.
Problems for the couple were not just limited to their leukemia-stricken daughter. In 1988, critics questioned the ethics of conceiving a child for the intention of finding a bone marrow donor for their then-16-year-old daughter, Anissa. In addition, Abraham Ayala had previously undergone a vasectomy, which had to be reversed for the couple to conceive a child.
Mary gave birth to Ayala, April 3, 1990, amid national outcry regarding medical ethics. Just 14 months after Ayala was born, she successfully gave a matching sample of bone marrow to save her older sister's life.
"We won the battle, and she's here, and for all the people that criticized us, here we are, happy as can be," said Mary Ayala.
Since the operation, Ayala's sister has fully recovered.
Initially when Anissa was in need of a transplant, there were only 17,000 marrow donors registered nationally. Currently, there are millions of them due to the extensive awareness campaigns from such high-profile cases.
Ayala has secured a job at a behavior therapy clinic in Orange County. Her goal is to help victims of communicative disorders to say: "I love you," because, "how important is it for a parent or child to hear those words?"
"Everybody has always said, 'You were brought into this world with a purpose,' and I want to finish with a purpose," Marissa said. "I believe that my mission in life is to help people."
