Urgent help needed: Bone marrow donor

[Jayar]

Hi everyone,

A young friend of mine is in desperate need of a bone marrow transplant NOW. Please read this, forward it, get tested, etc. Camila is FANTASTIC, a budding performer, and so full of life. Please help!

http://www.thecalifornian.com/articl...e-marrow-donor

Thank you!

[TheGirlCanSkate]

I can't tell but - only 2 of my grandparents are Hispanic (the other were Caucasian). Would that qualify for this purpose as being of Hispanic ethnicity?

[Moto Guzzi]

So sorry, Jayar. I hope Camila gets a donor.

I was tested several years ago when there was a donor drive at work. It was a quick procedure--just a simple blood test--but what a difference it could make to somebody's life.

[taf2002]

Hi everyone,

A young friend of mine is in desperate need of a bone marrow transplant NOW. Please read this, forward it, get tested, etc. Camila is FANTASTIC, a budding performer, and so full of life. Please help!

http://www.thecalifornian.com/articl...e-marrow-donor

Thank you!

I've been turned down by the donor program or I would be glad to try. I hope she gets a match.

[Simone411]

Jayar, sorry to hear about your friend. My prayers are with your friend in finding a match at marrow.org. I was a donor, but had to unregister due to health issues. As Moto Guzzi stated, it is just a simple blood test. It could definitely make a difference in saving someone's life.

[Jayar]

It is a swab test now, or at least that is what her father is telling me. They have the kits all over town, so I think they might be right. Thanks everyone-- if you know of anybody, please forward the information to them!

[GarrAarghHrumph]

I can't tell but - only 2 of my grandparents are Hispanic (the other were Caucasian). Would that qualify for this purpose as being of Hispanic ethnicity?

You might work for this, yes.

[Simone411]

Jayar, you're right. I forgot about it being a swab test. Several of my co-workers had donated blood for a friend that had leukemia a few years back. We also did the swab test (the swabs are used inside the mouth against the gum line of the jaw).

[Anita18]

I got swab tested to get registered. If it was going to save someone's life, I would not hesitate for a second. Good luck to your friend Jayar!

[Impromptu]

I've been in the registry since 1998, so if I were a match for her, it would have come up by now. Only once has the NMDP ever notified me that I was a potential match (Being of Eastern European descent, I have a very common tissue typing), and that patient did not proceed to transplant.

I'd encourage everyone to register though - even if you have a common tissue typing, it's still possible that you could get "the call." (I work for a transplant center and there are so many variables that are used to find a match).

[AragornElessar]

As many of you know, I'm a kidney transplant recipient (19 years on Dec 10th) and will do anything in my power to get the word out and/or to help someone else. I'm in Canada, but I just sent a mass e-mail to my US friends about your friend Jayar in the hopes they will go get tested and, in turn, a match found for her.

Will keep her in my prayers.

[Lanie]

I hope your friend finds a donor.

Reminds me I want to get registered but I don't think I can. I know I can't give blood.

[AragornElessar]

Jayar, I also posted a thread about your friend in the COT area of the Royalty MB I belong to. I hope it helps.

[Anita18]

I hope your friend finds a donor.

Reminds me I want to get registered but I don't think I can. I know I can't give blood.

Depends on the reason. I don't weigh enough to give blood (at least comfortably, you have to be at least 110 lbs and I'm juuuust over that) but for bone marrow, I don't think it matters. It's a different process.

[Jayar]

Thank you, everyone. I've been a bit overwhelmed at work, so I've not been able to get back to the thread until now. Camila is not doing well. They did all of the pre-transplant chemo, etc., which gave her a 4 week (?) window to find a donor. She is on week five, and is back in chemo, and it is not going well. She will have to have a donor in the next couple of weeks I am hearing, or they suspect that the cancer will come back with a rage. Very scary time right now. Good news is that the Mexican community in Mexico is getting very involved. Somehow some celebrities have picked up on the story, so her information has been sent out to more than 2 million people in the last week. We have heard that college campuses all over the country are having drives in her name (which is so fantastic for anyone looking for a vendor). Keep spreading the word. Maybe we can save more than just Camila?

[TalentedButHumble]

I just read this thread and put the story on my FB and twitter. There's got to be someone out there!

[Matryeshka]

I just tried to register, but the website is acting up.

[Debbie S]

Reminds me I want to get registered but I don't think I can. I know I can't give blood.

Depends on the reason. I don't weigh enough to give blood (at least comfortably, you have to be at least 110 lbs and I'm juuuust over that) but for bone marrow, I don't think it matters. It's a different process.

I don't weigh enough to give blood but I did a bone marrow drive about 6 or 7 years ago and they said my weight was fine - it was at a local synagogue for a Jewish woman who had leukemia. They gave us those cheek/mouth swab kits. I did not match for her (she eventually was matched to a donor on the west coast, I think) but I did get a call a few years later that I might be a match for someone. I went (large hospital that manages the registry in our area) and they took a lot of blood, but I didn't match. Even if you get matched via the initial (cheek swab) testing, there is only a 20% chance you will actually be a good enough match for the person.

I hope your friend gets a match soon, Jayar!

[Skittl1321]

Not only is the test a swab test now, but for most cases, the procedure used to take the marrow is much less painful than the traditional procedure, and the recovery is shorter. The painful donation procedure was something that used to keep people from signing up.

I signed up 2 years ago, and haven't gotten a call- but just being on the list is a good thing. Maybe someday I'll get a call.

[moebius]

Not only is the test a swab test now, but for most cases, the procedure used to take the marrow is much less painful than the traditional procedure, and the recovery is shorter. The painful donation procedure was something that used to keep people from signing up.

How is the new procedure different than the traditional? I read that it still pretty painful.