Lipscomb junior finds healing through brother’s lifesaving gift

Kim Chaudoin  |  11/23/2025

When Lipscomb University junior Chloe Butler left Allen Arena after a Bisons basketball game in February, she had no idea that her life was about to change.

She had laughed with friends, enjoyed the game and felt normal. But the next morning, unusual symptoms, a bloody nose, sores in her mouth and tiny red spots on her legs, sent her to urgent care. Hours later she learned her platelet count was 3,000, dangerously below the normal 150,000 to 450,000 range. Chloe was admitted to TriStar Centennial Hospital on Feb. 21 for future tests to determine the cause of her illness.

“I originally thought that it would be an easy fix,” said Chloe, data analytics major with a minor in film production. “But all of the treatments they used never raised my platelet level. They found out a week later that my bone marrow was failing.”

On Feb. 28, Chloe received a diagnosis she never expected at age 20: severe aplastic anemia, a rare condition in which the bone marrow stops producing red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. As she explained, “all of those cells were completely depleted in my body.”

Chloe needed a stem cell bone marrow transplant and she needed it quickly.

A perfect match

As doctors monitored Chloe’s numbers throughout March, her condition did not improve. While her family waited anxiously for clarity, her older brother, Connor, who will receive his Master of Science degree in sport analytics at commencement on Dec. 13 and is a staff member in Lipscomb’s event management office, underwent testing to see if he could serve as her donor.

The odds were slim with a one-in-four chance of Connor being a full match. But the test results stunned the family.

“With a one-in-four chance, he happened to be a 100% match,” Chloe said. “I am extremely thankful for that, especially because he's my only brother and my only sibling.”

Connor remembers the moment vividly. “I came home from work and they had just gotten the results,” he said. “Chloe told me I was a 100% match, and I was like, ‘Wow.’ We were celebrating. It was incredible.”

For him, the weight of the decision wasn’t heavy at all.

“It never really crossed my mind that I wouldn’t do it,” he said. “It was like, oh yeah, we’re doing this.”

April 11 was set as the day for the procedure, when Connor’s stem cells would give his sister a chance at renewed life.

Connor arrived early at the hospital, where doctors harvested bone marrow through two puncture sites in his lower back. “Afterwards, there was some soreness but for me it was minimal,” he said. After 10 days post stem cell harvesting, he was easing back into his job.

Hours after his procedure, nurses wheeled bags of fresh stem cells into Chloe’s room.

“They said, ‘It’s transplant day,’ and they made this nice poster,” she said. Her infusion began at 11:10 a.m. and lasted about five hours.

The most difficult part, she said, was the week of chemotherapy beforehand to clear her marrow. “That was the hardest part,” she said. “The day of the infusion, we both felt extremely nauseous. It was rough.”

A steady climb back to life

The weeks that followed were a “waiting game,” Chloe said. She stayed at TriStar Centennial Children’s Hospital from April 3 through May 5 as doctors monitored engraftment, the moment when Connor’s stem cells began creating their own life inside her body.

Every morning, she opened a patient portal on her phone and analyzed her own data.

“I would know before the doctors came in if I would need platelets,” she said. “It showed the trends. It helped my data brain, but I also gained a lot of knowledge in biology. I think it’s so interesting.”

Her father, Charlie (’90) and mother, Cynthia (Riden ’88) Butler, student records specialist in the registrar’s office, marveled at how Chloe handled each day. 

“What was so impressive is every morning, before the doctors came in, Chloe had already analyzed her data by viewing her patient portal and she knew what they were going to say,” Cynthia recalled.

Gradually, the counts rose, first the neutrophils, then the platelets. On May 5, one month after her transplant, Chloe went home with strict precautions. For 100 days, she stayed within a one hour drive of the hospital, went to the clinic twice a week for evaluating blood work and monitoring vitals, kept her central line clean, wore sunscreen and avoided anything that might expose her compromised immune system.

The 100th day post-transplant landed on a meaningful milestone: her 21st birthday.

“My friends threw me a surprise birthday party,” she said. “I felt so loved. They made the whole recovery process so much easier.”

Chloe, who also underwent sinus surgery in June, continued her coursework online throughout the summer. This semester she has some online and two in-person classes as her strength continues to return. Her hair is slowly growing back.

“One of the reasons I believe my recovery was so quick,” she said, “was because of my positive attitude.”

Held together by faith

The Butlers describe the first weeks of uncertainty as frightening.

“I’ll be honest, I was scared,” Connor said of those early days. One night, before the diagnosis, the family gathered in Chloe’s hospital room on bended knee to pray. “We were all feeling the same way: complete uncertainty,” he recalled. “We had no clue what was going on. We prayed, and I remember breaking down, saying, ‘Lord, we need you.’”

The peace that followed, they said, came from their faith. Cynthia said she leaned on a verse from 1 Thessalonians 5 that became their anchor: “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in ALL circumstances…”

“I felt a sense of calmness,” she said of the transplant day. “I had a peace that everything was going to be okay and a comfort knowing that prayers were being lifted up on behalf of our family by so many people.”

After learning Chloe’s condition was treatable, Connor said, “It was incredible how God answers prayers, how He is always working. It was very evident.”

Chloe said she saw God’s hand in every detail. “After I heard Connor was a perfect match, I knew that God’s plan was for me to get this transplant,” she said. “All of the circumstances had been so shocking and sad, but every little attribute of it lined up to tell me I was going to be okay.”

Their shared trial also brought the siblings closer.

“I know we were close before,” Chloe said, “but we’re so close now. I mean, we literally share the same bone marrow.”

Strength of community

The Butlers couldn’t imagine the journey without the Lipscomb community and the support of others.

“Our church, the Church of Christ in Green Hills, was incredible,” Cynthia said. “We are thankful for the many prayers offered on behalf of our family.”  After Chloe’s first Sunday back, she remembers the congregation turning around and clapping when they saw her. The next song led by Don Hudson was Goodness of God, which she said still brings her to tears.

Their Lipscomb family was supportive as well. Chloe’s professors offered flexible deadlines, checked on her regularly and supported her academically and emotionally. “I am very thankful to all of my professors,” she said. Through it all, Chloe kept up with her studies, continued making academic progress and even made the honor roll this spring.

The doctors, nurses and staff members at TriStar Centennial Pediatric Hematology/Oncology provided exceptional care. “I thank all of my medical team who were involved with my transplant and recovery,” Chloe said. “The fact that medical advancements have come this far to give me a second chance at life is such a blessing.”

Among the many nursing staff that cared for Chloe during her hospital stay was Lipscomb alumna Scottie (Smith) Young (‘23). Young, upon hearing that Chloe was admitted overnight following her sinus surgery this summer, took the time to visit her in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit.  “It was great to have a graduate from Lipscomb University that cared enough to follow up outside of her scheduled shift to show compassion and be a light to Chloe and to our family,” Cynthia said.

Connor’s colleagues in Lipscomb events management made sure he had time to recover from his donor procedure. “Everyone here, my whole team, was awesome,” he said.

A new outlook

Now several months post-transplant, Chloe said she has a renewed sense of gratitude.

“I wake up every morning thankful,” she said. “Before I got sick, I don’t believe I really thought about how thankful I am for life. It has brought a new meaning.”

This semester she is taking several online courses and two in-person classes, rejoined friends, is active in Phi Sigma social club and plans to participate in Singarama this spring.

Her experience has reshaped her career ambitions, too. “I am interested in health care data now,” she said. “I can access all of my data on the portal. I think it’s so interesting.”

As the Thanksgiving season approaches, the family views the holiday differently this year.

“Thanksgiving has a new meaning,” Cynthia said. “Just to know that Chloe’s completely well, that Connor was the perfect donor… I feel so grateful.”

Chloe feels the same, especially toward her brother.

“I’m ultimately so thankful to God, and I’m thankful for everything I went through,” she said. “But honestly, to my brother Connor, I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

‘Share your light’

As she continues healing, Chloe said she hopes her journey encourages others.

“I want people to realize how amazing life is,” she said. “Take it one day at a time, trust in God and pray every day. Share your light with others, because it’s so, so important.”

Her family hopes to mentor others walking similar paths. “We just want to be there to help other families,” Cynthia said.

Connor added, “No matter how tough the circumstances are, there’s a lot of good that can be taken out of any situation. Our community was such a blessing to us. It motivates us to try to be a blessing to others.”

“It changed me so much,” said Chloe. “Life has so much meaning. And I just want to do a lot more with my life and be a light to others.”