A couple of months ago, Bill and I participated in our local Be the Match Marrow Registry drive. It was so, so easy to register (a little cheek swab) and Bill and I left feeling so glad to be part of something so important. I can only imagine what it would be like if Gwendolyn's life could be saved by a bone marrow transplant — saved — but we could not find a marrow match. Thousands of people every year hope and wait for a possible marrow donor. But many people will never find their match.
So in an effort to grow the registry by 46,000 donors, the National Marrow Donor Program has launched Be the Match Marrowthon. For thousands of patients living with diseases like leukemia, finding a match on the registry is their only chance for long-term survival. We all have the power to help, the power to save a life. From June 8-22 you can join the registry for free. Join the Marrowthon! Click here to learn more about the marrow donation process.
Additionally, if you are pregnant, consider donating your cord blood to help save a life: A joyous event for you could become the same for someone in need. In the past, when a baby was born, the umbilical cord was thrown away. But today, blood from the umbilical cord can be collected after your baby's birth and donated to a public cord blood bank to help someone with a life-threatening disease.
