Walnut : Boy to Have 2nd Transplant

A 2-year-old Walnut boy, who has a rare metabolic disease, will undergo a second bone marrow transplant Friday, said his mother, Tracy Worthington.

Ryan Worthington had a bone marrow transplant at the University of Minnesota’s children’s hospital in August, but the surgery was unsuccessful. His mother said that the second transplant is riskier because Ryan is weaker but that there is no alternative.

Ryan and his parents have been staying at an apartment near the hospital. The boy has Hurler’s syndrome, a fatal disease that prevents the body from processing protein.