Marrow Drives 4 South Asians

Approximately every 3 minutes, someone new is diagnosed with blood cancer. Approximately every 10 minutes, someone dies. Right now some patients from our community are battling life threatening diseases like leukemia. An illness so critical, the only hope for cure is a marrow/blood stem cell transplant.

Ethnicity plays a crucial role when finding a donor for stem cell/marrow transplants. Yet South Asians are severely under-represented in the worldwide registry (less than 2%). Moreover, there are no stem cell testing sites available in South Asia and many countries have yet to establish stem cell registries.

Funds raised for this cause will be donated to International Medical Health Organization (theIMHO.org), a registered non-profit in the US that seeks to improve and develop healthcare services and infrastructure in under-served regions worldwide.

IMHO is developing partnerships with organizations in South Asia that can facilitate HLA matching to save the lives of South Asians with blood cancers. By registering more South Asians to the stem cell/marrow registry, countless lives can be saved now and in the future.

HELP SAVE VASUNDRA

The inspiration for this campaign came from the story of Vasundra Pathmarajah. Vasundra is a loving wife, mother and grandmother. She loves spending time with her family and traveling. However, that all changed September 2017. Vasundra was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), a blood cancer. With this devastating diagnosis, she began aggressive chemotherapy. However this treatment alone may not be enough to provide a cure. She will also need a blood stem cell / marrow transplant from an unrelated donor as no one in her family has proven to be a match. This simple act can save her life.

This relentless woman has spent so many years of her life taking care of her loved ones and community members (she is a longtime active member of Chinmaya Mission, Nandalala Mission and the Hindu Temple of Antelope Valley). Now they are appealing to you. We can help her beat this awful disease and ensure she has many more days with her family.

Since she is Sri Lankan, her best chance of finding a match is within the South Asian community. All you need to do is register as a donor to help Vasundra and thousands like her in search for a matching donor and donate if you come up as a match.

ALL IT TAKES IS A CHEEK SWAB. Become a marrow donor. REGISTER in your country at: https://share.wmda.info/display/WMDAREG/Database

Want to know more about the process of becoming a donor? Watch this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYuIefbWj7I