Nine months ago, Hallie Kyed was just two years old when she was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia in April 2023. Tragically, as her father, NFL reporter for the Boston Herald, Doug Kyed shared on Instagram, Hallie, at the age of 2, has passed away on January 21.
According to Kyed, things took a turn for his little girl when she relapsed following a bone marrow transplant. Her chemotherapy had stopped working.
“Hallie died peacefully in her sleep on Sunday morning as Jen and I held her hands in bed,” Doug wrote. “We’re completely lost and heartbroken without Hallie. Our lives will never be the same.”
As Doug continued, his little girl “was a special kid.” And despite being just two years old, “she made a positive impact on so many people she met.”
“We were lucky to be her parents, and Olivia was fortunate to have the best baby sister.”
As the reporter explained, they “knew the prognosis was poor when she relapsed after her bone marrow transplant, so the whole family spent special time at the hospital last week, but we held out hope for remission because of how brave, strong and resilient Hallie had been through her entire nine-month battle with acute myeloid leukemia and all of its complications.”
But despite Hallie’s strength and her resilience in the face of such tragedy, “chemotherapy after transplant was ineffective, and her aggressive form of leukemia had grown out of control by the time she started a trial treatment.”
Doug praised the doctors at Boston Children’s Hospital for doing “everything they could to help Hallie, and she beat AML every day for over nine months straight. Nothing could have ever prepared us for this moment when she was first diagnosed in April or after her successful transplant in October.”
The grieving father opened up about how Hallie would yell “DADDDDYYY” at him, demanding that he “take her on a walk around the hospital floor” and how she would give him “sweet little pats on the back when I took her out of her crib.”
“Hal, my koala baby, my little Hallie Bear, my Sour Patch Kid […] was so beautiful, naturally funny (and knew it) and was going to be a star in dance class. Doctors, nurses and hospital staff loved seeing which princess dress she’d be wearing that day (or particular hour).”
And although “the world is a worse place without Hallie in it,” Doug hopes that those who are mourning the loss of his daughter learn one thing from her; “it’s to know exactly what you want and to be persistent in asking for it, whether it’s going on a walk, ride in the car or wearing one particular Disney dress (usually Cruella).”
“I’ll miss rubbing her hair and kissing her head and telling her I love her the most. Hallie forever.”
Hallie will be laid to rest on January 26. Our hearts and prayers are with the Kyed family during this particularly difficult time.