TEMPLE, Texas — 2-year-old Piper Jackson is full of life and energy today, but the road to get there wasn’t easy.
”Within 24 hours of her being born, she started having little red spots pop up,” said Piper’s mother, Ashley Jackson.
“In postpartum I asked the nurse, 'Hey is this normal? This is our first baby, I don’t know',".
It turns out that it wasn’t normal, and for months, little Piper suffered from severe rashes that seemed to have no cause, and doctors had no answers.
”The pediatrician wasn’t sure, so they sent us to allergy,” Jackson said.
“They sent us to allergy, and they said everything was fine. They couldn’t figure it out — they thought it was just a rash.”
Frustrated and worried for their daughter, the Jackson family went to an infectious disease doctor who vowed to find the cause.
”He said, 'We’re going to figure it out, we're not going to say it’s just a rash'," Jackson said.
“He opted to do a genetic panel on her, and we found out that she had CAPS from that genetic panel.”
CAPS, or Cryopyrin-associated periodic syndrome, is a rare hereditary disease that can be life threatening, and can lead to sudden organ failure in some cases.
Further testing showed that Piper’s condition was passed to her from her father John, who was told he was lucky they found it when they did.
”By the time he reached 50, things could have been really bad for him since he was not medicated,” Jackson said.
"Basically, getting her diagnosed saved his life.”
John now calls Piper his hero.
”I thank this little girl every day for saving my life, because without her, Daddy might not be here," said Piper's father, John Jackson.
”He might not have seen her get married or graduate high school,” Ashley Jackson said.
"You just never know what the future holds.”
”I love you baby girl, thank you,” John Jackson said.
John and Piper are now getting the medication they need to live long and healthy lives.
