Sharnell Onaga, 38, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia after a routine pregnancy checkup. Onaga, of Puerto Rican and Portuguese ancestry, had hoped that Hawai'i's variety of ethnic backgrounds would help her find a match.

Though advised by her doctors to terminate her pregnancy to begin treatment, Onaga didn't consider that an option, and the leukemia was relatively dormant until daughter Sarah, now 4 months old, was born, said family spokeswoman Cissy Boyer.

"She's now enjoying a well-deserved rest, not only from the rigors of the past year, but for her lifetime of selfless giving and service as a wonderful wife, great mother and fabulous friend," Boyer said.

After several rounds of chemotherapy at The Queen's Medical Center, Onaga went to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle for a cord blood transplant, Boyer said. An infection delayed the transplant and the leukemia returned full force, she said.