| A Bowling Green baby selected for a research study in China to help his eyesight is now home. 11-month old Jackson Blackford may look like your average baby, but there's more to this baby than meets the eye. "He has a condition called optic nerve hypoplasia, it's an underdevelopment of his optic nerves" Blackford was born with this condition that left him blind. For three and a half weeks he underwent four stem cell transfusions in China to help those nerves. He was one of five children in the world chosen for a research study using umbilical cord stem cells. "Not necessarily grow into big healthy nerves, but they would function better with the help of the stem cells," says Rachel Stayer, Jackson's mother. An expensive process. "About $60,000 dollars, none of it, not one penny is covered by insurance," says Stayer. But a surgery with an end result worth every penny. "Eventually the stem cells as they repair his optic nerve, he'll be able to pick up and see little objects," says Stayer. Jackson's mother Rachel says they are already seeing improvements. "He has since then pretty much gained alot of light perception
that he didn't have before," says Stayer. "He also sits with his head up more and kinda looks around. Before he would sit with his head down," says Jackson's mother. And there are alot of people this family wants to thank for that. "Without the community we wouldn't have been able to take Jackson over there," says Stayer. "Without them, he may not be where he is now and its just gonna get better for the next 6 to 9 months," says Jackson's mother. They aren't giving up on giving their baby sight anytime soon. "I hate that he can't see, but it's definitely just God's grace that we have a possibility to help him," says Stayer. Meanwhile, Jackson is still in need of a hyperbaric oxygen chamber that will help maintain his healthy optic nerve. His family also plans to take Jackson back for another treatment in the next two years. | 
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Bowling Green Baby Home From Research Study in China
