Bone Marrow Donation Registry

New York, NY

As I've mentioned previously, a childhood friend of mine was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia. Unfortunately, his chemo therapy treatments won't be sufficient to eradicate the disease from his body, and he's in critical need of a bone marrow transplant. Because no one in his family is a match, they are forced to turn to the donor pool of the National Marrow Donor Program. And so I'm asking you to consider signing up to help Jason and many people like him in this fight against the disease. Simply click this link:

http://www.marrow.org/HELP/Join_the_Donor_Registry/index.html

Here's some information you should know about joining. The test is completely painless, requiring only a swab of a Q-Tip on the inside of your cheek. It's then sent to the center for tissue typing. However, it costs $52. Also, there's the whole business about the actual bone marrow donation. It requires a bit more than just donating blood, and may involve a general or local anesthetic. (Small surgery)

I'd be remiss if I told you I signed up without second thought. But it definitely took some soul searching to hit that "send" button. Upon reflection, I realized that $52 and potentially a day or two of discomfort would be worth it to save Jason's life (or the lives of others). So I suggest at least checking out the site, learning the facts and making your own decision.