At 33 years old, I can remember when Cancer was basically a death sentence. It really wasn’t very long ago…Cancer is an epidemic that has affected all of our lives, in one way or another. Just 30 years ago, we had no answers as far as what causes it so there was little hope of curing it. In the last twenty years, the war against Cancer has progressed immensely. Today, the chance of surviving Cancer is almost Always dependant on finding an exact blood match. This can be very tricky since there are over 600 million different HLA combinations. There are links and videos posted on this blog to help you understand more about blood matching, and transplant procedures. The best part about all of this, though, is that you do not even have to leave your house to find out if you are a match for Jamie!!! This is not only about Jamie though, if you are not a match for her you will be added to the donor list. Simple as that. If you do ever get the opportunity to donate, I can assure you that as long as you live you will never do another thing more fullfilling than this.
Click on the icon above or the link in the sidebatr to become a donor. This entire process will take a total of ten minutes. You will answer a series of about 10 questions. If you qualify, you will receive a kit in about 5 days. It takes 5 minutes to swab for DNA and send back. That’s it!!! Then you wait…Please read the information about the transplant procedures and watch the videos about this disease. When it comes to this fight against Cancer, knowledge is power…Just imagine if Jamie was your sister or daughter, girlfriend, wife or co-worker. Even better imagine that it was you waiting to find a donor.. We can make a difference!!!
I am only one, but I am one. I cannot do everything, but I can do something. And I will not let what I cannot do interfere with what I can do.
-Edward Everett Hale
When I was 25 my father was diagnosed with AML (Acute Myelodysplastic Leukemia). That was 2001. It was a nightmare. It was also a miracle. Against overwhelming odds, I was a perfect HLA match and was able to be the donor for my dad. Of course, when it happens to a close family member or a loved one, we do not even think twice about becoming a donor. We just do it. I would have never thought about registering to the registry as a potential donor. It wasn't that I didn't care for others, but my lack of knowledge. I am creating this blog to inform you of all the aspects of becoming registered, the process of transplantation, and the DIRE need for people like you.
I will keep updated information on different types of Leukemia and breakthroughs as well as stories of cancer survivors and patients waiting for transplants.
It has been almost 8 years since I gave my stem cells to my dad. Today, my dad is cancer free. Recently I was writing a research paper for a clss and went online to the website of the hospital the transplant was done at. I needed some basic information for the paper. While I was there, I started to read about the patients and the doctors. Wow, that brought back amazing memories. Somehow I was linked back to the facebook page of a 30 year old girl in need of a donor. As I read through her info, I became extremely interested in helping her. I know the chances of me being a match to her is rare, but I sent a letter to her, offering my help in any way. This is when I was linked to Marrow.org. I am absolutely blown away at how simple this process of getting into the registry has become!!!! I want to share it with you!
There is nothing in life so amazing as knowing that another human being is alive because of you. This is not like giving a kidney, it is not painful or invasive in any way. I honestly believe that if people know more information about this, the amount of donors will skyrocket!!!
This is what my blog is about, and my goal is for YOU to register, and give hope
