“Take me out to the ballgame. Take me out with the crowd” to register for Be The Match’s donor registration event. Wait, what? Yep, that’s right! If you’re between the ages of 18 and 44, you could save a life as you root for our local South Bend Silver Hawks as they take on West Michigan Whitecaps on June 13, 2014 at Four Winds Field at 7:35 p.m. If you are willing to donate either bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cells, registration is free and easy, as the costs are being covered by Sweeney Julian and South Bend Silver Hawks. During the game, simply fill out a form, swab your cheek, and then drop the sample into an envelope. However, before registering, please check out www.bethematch.orgfor more information about the serious commitment you’ll be making to critically ill patients.
Over the past 25 years, Be The Match has been connecting blood cancer patients (those with leukemia,lymphoma, myeloma, etc.) with life saving donor matches. It is a nonprofit organization that’s operated by National Marrow Donor Program. When initially signing up, only your tissue type is added to the registry, and you do not donate until you are a match for a patient (the chances of donating are about 1 in 500). If you are the best match for a patient, then that patient’s medical team will contact you to request your donation. At that time, the patient will be counting on your commitment, but you can change your mind. However, please keep in mind that a last minute decision not to donate can be very dangerous and even life-threatening to the patient. After you donate, you can return to your normal daily activities within several days, depending on the particulars of your donation.
Hot dogs, peanuts, soda, baseball (America’s pastime), and the opportunity to save a life – sounds like a pretty awesome Friday night to Sweeney Julian! If you cannot make it out to the game, please feel free to swing by Sweeney Julian’s office that week to register. Remember, you could be someone’s cure; take the pledge and join the largest, most diverse marrow registry in the world.