'It's not fair': Teen dies days after transplant from sister

Dominique Stallard lay across from her older sister Chantal in hospital last week desperately trying to save her life by donating stem cells to end her seven-year battle with leukaemia.

This week, only Dominique is still here.

Auckland 19-year-old Chantal Stallard died on December 19 at the most vulnerable initial stage of a stem cell transplant, after a relapse of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia diagnosed in May this year.

It was Chantal's second bout with the blood cancer, having been in remission for five years after an earlier struggle with it when she was nearly 12.

Parents Tony and Virginia Stallard say it was "amazing" luck that Chantal's 17-year-old sister Dominique was a 100% match for a stem cell transplant.

"People can have seven or eight siblings and not one of them is a match," Virginia said.

"And to only have one sibling and her being a 100% match, is very special. We were told we had really good chances with this match.

"So the fact that some bug took hold of her, she was seriously unfortunate."

Chantal's immune system and vital organs were so weak from two earlier chemotherapy treatments in 2019, the transplant did not have a chance to take hold.

"When the stem cells go in that's the most vulnerable period. We lost her on day zero [of the transplant], and never had the chance for those amazing stem cells do their job, as they need at least two weeks," Virginia said.

In a speech to her entire Long Bay College in August, sister Dominique spoke about the process of committing to the stem cell transplant.

"As a 'just in case', I decided to see if I would be a match for the transplant, if my sister needed one," Dominique said.

"Even though there is only a 25% chance of me being a match. As of only last week [August], I found out that I am a 100% match.

"As of only last week, my sister might need that transplant. As a sister, I am saying "yes" to saving a life. As a sister, I am going to do this. That is what I call love, loving unconditionally.

"It's not fair. Never fair. To have to even fathom someone to go through it, let alone my sister."

Chantal's stoic last moments in Auckland Hospital with her parents and sister last Wednesday night were a testament to her strength of personality, father Tony said.

"She was a very strong girl. On her final night in DCC [Department of Critical Care] she'd had such little sleep they had to put her on a ventilator to try to help her have some rest in the hope that they could turn her around," Tony said.

"She was still very upbeat when we said good night. I said to her 'you know it's going to be tough', and she said 'yeah Dad I've got this, pinky promise lock it?'

"And we did a pinky promise lock it, she gave me a big smile, yet only three hours later we were called down and things went sadly downhill from there."

Virginia and Tony are left with the huge loss of an extremely creative and ambitious daughter, who was in her first year of an Arts degree at the University of Auckland, majoring in media, film and television.

"The world is missing out on the most amazing artist who was musically talented, very academic, and everything she touched turned to gold," Virginia said.

"She had a profound effect on her surroundings at college, she was an amazing drama student and piano player.

"She could hear a piece of music on the radio and say 'hmm I like that' and just sit behind the piano and figure it out.

"But her favourite topic was media studies and she joined uni to follow her dream. She was going to make movies and be in them."

As the extended Stallard family gathered last Saturday to have ​Chantal home before her interment this Friday, Tony and Virginia spoke of the "nightmare" that has descended upon them.

"We are gutted, we are horrified that this beautiful soul, who was going to show the world how amazing she was, is gone. Everyone is missing out," Virginia said.

"We're not ready to let her go. But now she's in heaven, her star shining brightly."