Back in December, my old pal Emru Townsend (we met as teenagers in Montreal) was diagnosed with leukemia. Since that time, he’s undergone several rounds of chemo, and has been searching for a bone marrow donor. Unfortunately, Emru’s only sister, Tamu, is not a match – but she has helped to mobilize a small army to support the cause of getting more people added to the bone marrow donor registry. In doing my small bit to assist in that effort, I just ordered a tissue-typing kit online (a simple cheek swab that you do yourself, and mail back), so that I can get myself added to the national bone marrow donor registry. And I’m posting this tonight to encourage others to do the same – if you’re medically qualified, willing to make the commitment to become a donor if you end up being a match for someone in need, and have the means (the kit usually costs around US$52 – typically considered a tax-deductible donation), please, please, please consider it. For more information about Emru, bone marrow donation, and how (easily) you can get yourself added to the registry, please visit http://www.healemru.com/. If you can’t get added to the registry, please pass the word along. The more donors there are in the registry, the better the odds that Emru – or anyone else in similar need of a donor – will be able to find a match. Human lives depend on this effort.
Summary:
- Please take some time to check out http://www.healemru.com/.
- If you’re willing and able, get added to the registry.
- Spread the word. If you have a blog, post this info. If you have a mouth, use it to tell someone about this cause.
- Donations to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society don’t hurt, either. Again, if you have the means, please consider it.
Hey Dan;
When Orsino was diagnosed I went to Masonite and gave a sample aned was added to the registry so I assume they have checked if I am a match?
How do you find out?
Ram
Good for you!! Once you’ve given a sample (and filled in the paperwork, etc.), you should all set – the different national registries generally take care of sharing their info with each other. Check out (e.g.) Bone Marrow Donors Worldwide (http://www.bmdw.org/), or the World Marrow Donor Association (http://www.worldmarrow.org/) – these are just a couple of the organizations that do this sort of work.
You should also check out Gift of Life (http://www.giftoflife.org/about/20.html) – I’m not sure what sort of presence they have in Canada, but they’re an interesting organization either way. Their focus is (or at least was) on recruiting “donors of Eastern-European Jewish ethnicity throughout North America and abroad”.