The nature of my enemy
When I was pregnant with Alli, my angel, I tested positive for Kell antibodies. Not just that, but we learned my husband is homozygous for the Kell antibody, winning a most unfortunate and undesirable genetic lottery. What does this mean? It means that my body would treat every baby who inherited Kell like a disease, and they were all going to inherit Kell. We were told 8% of humans have Kell, and of those, 2% are homozygous for it. Talk about crappy luck. The body will attack the baby like a disease until he/she becomes anemic and has to be induced or death will result. The usual pattern for Kell is the first child is born without a problem, then the body becomes sensitive to Kell. Every baby after that is likely to end up anemic, usually to the point of death. I read about a study in the 80s. Of 6 women who conceived with the Kell antibodies, 6 babies were lost. It's a lot like the Rh- treatment except there is no cure, no treatment, no solution except to watch the baby's skull and transfuse or deliver early.
How it Happened
My boy came without a problem, of course. My first girl didn't have any problems either. The only thing I can imagine was that because my boy came a month early and had to be induced, somehow, my body didn't get with the program. However, by the time Alli came along, she triggered the deluxe treatment. I had to travel to a hospital an hour away every 1-2 weeks from the 20-week point on, until they induced her at 37 weeks because she was safer out than in. Of the 15+ miscarriages since, none has made it far enough along to have been affected by Kell. We wonder if there may be some kind of unknown antibody or other problem they don't test for that caused it. We'll never know because we've given up the battle.
Looking Back
We watch my husband's family history line for possible Kell. If they had one or possibly two children, they're great candidates for Kell. Obviously, since my husband is homozygous, it had to come from both sides, both the Swedish Finn side of his Finnish mother and the Scandinavian/English side of his American father. We do periodically find a family that makes us think Kell. Obviously, we'll never know.
Not My Hero
Imagine my surprise when I was reading up on Henry VIII and learned that some historians believe the main reason he had such a hard time getting heirs from his wives was because of Kell. He consistently blamed them, especially his first wife, but it was very likely because of him. I never expected to feel any kinship with this fascinating but notorious historical figure. I can't say this makes me feel empathy for most of what he suffered and/or inflicted on others, often because he blamed them for all that went wrong in his life. But I do feel this strange connection because I get the struggles of hoping this one, this pregnancy, will be the one, the one you get to hold and raise. I'm not sure how to feel about this connection except that it makes me feel at least a little less alone in the struggles we've had, even if I don't love the company. I'm just thankful for the two we can still hold and for the knowledge that we'll hold them all again.
