A three-year-old Vancouver girl with leukemia, who was the focus of a intensive year-long campaign in the local Chinese community to find her a bone marrow donor, has died.

Makoda Suen had been adopted from China two years ago, and was diagnosed with the disease last June. She died last week.

Makoda Suen, 3, died of leukemia, following a year-long search for a suitable bone-marrow donor. (CBC)

Her adoptive parents had launched an awareness campaign in the Lower Mainland's Asian community in an effort to find a good match. But they ran out of time.

Canadian Blood Services says the best chance for any person needing a bone marrow transplant is to find donors of the same ethnic background.

Spokeswoman Bev Campbell says Makoda's struggle has made a big difference in Greater Vancouver, with the number of Asian donors increasing 10 fold.

She now wants to keep that momentum alive, especially among parents of young children.

"There are parents out there who are listening to this story, who know they could find themselves in that situation down the road, and we would want to be able to help those parents and that child."