My uncle has been diagnosed with MDS (a type of blood cancer). The chemotherapy is not working at this point so he needs a bone marrow transplant. My mother is his only sibling and was thought to be his best chance for a match. We have recently learned that her screening came back and she is not close enough to be a match for a transplant. For a moment, this took the wind out of our sails. But my sweet and strong Uncle is continuing the fight, thanks be to God.
Sloan Kettering is looking through the registry for potential bone marrow donors. I registered tonight. If you register, they will send you a "kit" for you to perform a simple mouth swab. If it looks like you could possibly be a potential donor, they would follow up with a blood test. If the blood test is positive, then you would either be a peripheral stem cell donor (just a simple blood draw) or bone marrow donor (which is outpatient, but done under anesthesia and they collect liquid marrow with a needle into your pelvic bone).
If it is in your heart to register, go to BE THE MATCH By doing so, you will actually be in the registry for all of those in need, not only my Uncle. After the testing, you can change your mind at any time and take your name off the registry. If you do register, you can choose to send me your registry # and his Doctor can specifically check to see if you're a match for my Uncle. Anyone could be a possible match, but because race and ethnicity play a good role in this, the best match would be someone from northern European background (Ireland, Germany, Scandinavia, etc.). To register you must be between 18-60 years of age and in good health. The website above has a lot of good information and should answer any of your questions.
"With God all things are possible".
Lord have mercy. I pray a match is found soon! I was about to register then I remembered that I can't for health reasons at the moment. Do you know what your uncle's blood type is?
ReplyDeleteMy mom had to go through this as well when she was treating her cancer. They were able to find a match in her eldest brother (who is now 80), but she is worried that if her cancer gets worse, he might not be healthy enough to actually donate. I was never tested because I was pregnant when she was diagnosed, so I could be a match for all I know. My sister was not.
ReplyDeleteI will pray for your uncle. I hope they will find a match soon.