Indiana teen becomes first pediatric patient to receive bone marrow transplant from deceased donor

INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — A Bloomington teen has become the first pediatric patient in the world to receive a successful bone marrow transplant from a deceased donor, physicians at Riley Health say.

Fourteen-year-old Noah Britt is looking forward to his next challenging chapter of life: Online high school this fall. While high school is a big obstacle, he has already overcome much bigger ones.

Noah was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in August 2025. According to Riley Children’s Hospital, Noah’s leukemia didn’t respond well to treatment, leading his doctors to determine a transplant would give him the best chance at survival.

IU Health says more than 18,000 Americans — including approximately 4,000 children — are diagnosed with blood cancers that may require a bone marrow transplant to survive.

For patients with aggressive leukemia, the disease destroys the bone marrow’s ability to produce healthy blood cells, making timely treatment critical.

Traditionally, stem cells are collected from a living compatible donor, typically a family member or a match identified through a national registry.

Dr. Jodi Skiles, medical director of Riley Children’s pediatric stem cell transplant program, says finding a way to help Noah was a race against time.

Noah received his first transplant in January, though it unfortunately failed. After that, doctors say he had...