Photo Courtesy of the power-of-giving

(KUTV) UTAH COUNTY - Tyler and Lisy Fish of Utah County knew there was something wrong with their daughter Natalie's health when she was just a toddler. She was always sick.

"A cold or simple cough has brought her to her death bed on many occasions," said Tyler.

After their daughter Alice was born, they saw the same health problems in her.

For years, the family took great care to keep the girls from any germs - meaning no playgrounds, no recess or other normal childhood activities.

Natalie is now 8, Alice is 2. Just three months ago the Fish's learned their daughters' condition has a name: Leaky Severe Combined Immunodeficiency.

A bone marrow transplant is the potential cure.

Doctors at Primary Children's Medical Center are preparing Natalie for chemotherapy to basically remove her deficient immune system and make way for healthy marrow from a donor - in Natalie's case, the donor is her own little brother Blair who is four years old.

"He says his blood has Natalie's medicine," said Lisy who is proud of her little boy, yet nervous for him because giving the marrow will be hard on his body. Alice's donor is a person from another state. Her transplant is expected to happen in January.

For the Fish's, having three children in the hospital is going to be tough. But the parents say the decision to put their children through the procedures was an easy one - since new bone marrow is a potential cure. "I want them to be normal," said Lisy.

Tyler Fish quit his job recently to deal with all the trials their children face.

The Fish's have 5 children and are now in a sort of quarantine situation - trying to keep germs away to ensure good health for everyone before the surgeries and after.

Friends have opened donation funds at two banks to help the family.