African Descent Marrow Donor Urgently Needed to Save Zyreal

I'm begging here. If you are of African descent (No matter what continent you live on) and if you are not in a National Marrow Donor Program PLEASE consider joining to help save Zyreal. Also please forward this message to anyone you know who might be able to help him.

Zyreal is an adopted 7 year old boy who suffers from Sickle Cell Anemia. He recently underwent a cord blood (stem cell) transplant to save his life but today his family found out the transplant failed. This means he is now left with no working bone marrow. His body cannot produce new blood cells or platelets so for the time being he will have to rely on transfusions to buy him more time. A better match must be found ASAP if Zyreal is going to survive.

Ethnicity is crucial. Any patient in need of a marrow transplant will most likely find a match within their own ethnic group so Zyreal needs more people of African descent to join the marrow donor program in case they are the one who is going to be able to save his life.

___________________________________________________________

IN THE UNITED STATES

If you live in the United States please go to Be the Match and enter your zip code to locate a live drive in your area:

http://www.marrow.org/JOIN/Join_in_Person/index.html

It takes 4 cotton swabs that you wipe on the inside of your cheeks to find out if you are the match that can help Zyreal. It can then take up to 10 weeks for the test to be processed. Zyreal cannot wait so please do not delay in locating a drive.

___________________________________________________________

ALL OTHER COUNTRIES

There is also a list of international marrow programs at this link:

http://helpingtami.org/asian_stem_cell_transplant_int_marrow_programs.html

Please contact a program near you to locate a live drive. In most countries testing is simply swiping the inside of your cheeks with 4 cotton swabs. It can then take up to 10 weeks for the test to be processed. Zyreal cannot wait so please do not delay in locating a drive.

A Message from Tami Day +155

Hi Everyone,

I just wanted to share a belated Thanksgiving message with all of you from Tami:

Happy Belated Thanksgiving to all my family, friends and supporters,

These past months I have been overwhelmed with all of your love, support and messages in person, by email, on the phone, through the mail and through my blog and website. I am so thankful for each of you and I'm hoping the best for each of you in the coming year.

Love,
Tami

Stacie here, I am happy, no, make that thrilled to report that Tami is finally feeling better! Her back isn't perfect but continues to improve. Her body also continues to recover from the transplant. And big news, her hair is starting to grow back! At day +155 post transplant she's almost halfway to her half-year mark! That will be a reason to celebrate for sure. Maybe it'll catch on, celebrating half birthdays with a cupcake :)

Other patients we know are also reporting good news.

Matthew: Is recovering from his transplant and has moved out of the hospital and into an apartment near his hospital, very similar to how Tami did. Read his blog by CLICKING HERE

Zyreal: Is 7 years old and received his transplant and is recovering, still in the hospital. Read his online journal by CLICKING HERE

Jonathan Haupt will be receiving his mini haplo (a half matched) transplant from his sister Lynn on Dec. 8th. To learn more you can read his blog by CLICKING HERE

Our friend Roger, who also had MDS just like Tami, is continuing to recover from his transplant in Texas. He received it in March of this year but is having some complications now. It took Roger a year to receive his transplant because he had no insurance. Now he cannot work and is stressed about finances. If you would like to help Roger you can purchase a $5 "Cancer Sucks • I HAVE MDS" wristband or can make a donation to a fund I started for him here on Tami's website. Just CLICK HERE to place an order or make a donation.

On a sad note little Jasmina Anema is not doing well post transplant and it is feared that she has in fact relapsed and her Leukemia is returning. Recently the Make a Wish Foundation had arranged for her to meet and talk with President Obama as well as attend the annual pardoning of the White House turkey last week, but instead was rushed to the hospital due to a seizure. Her meeting with President Obama has been postponed for now. You can read more and watch a news video about Jasmina getting ready to leave for Washington D.C. by CLICKING HERE

There is now a follow up video to that story that you can view by CLICKING HERE

2 Easy Ways You can Help Janet Find Her Cure for Cancer!

1. Business Cards
These are Janet's new business cards. You can order some from me (for free) to hand out to friends, leave a pile on your desk at work for colleagues or customers or keep a few in your wallet or purse to hand out to people you meet. CLICK HERE to place an order online.

This is the front of Janet's business cards

And this is the back

---

2. Flyers
If you have a computer and a printer and somewhere to hang or hand out a flyer (i.e. your office at work, a community bulletin board, your church, a club or group, etc.) you can help me to help Janet. There are two parts to this flyer, the information sheet that you can print and hand out and the tear away tabs that can be added to the flyer for bulletin boards so that readers can take one with them to remember the website url when they go back to their computer.

(These links will open in new browser windows and may take up to 1 minute to load as they are high resolution, printable flyers.)

CLICK HERE to download the PDF of this flyer.

CLICK HERE to download the tear away tabs that can be attached to the bottom of the flyer.

---

And this is Janet. You can visit her WEBSITE by CLICKING HERE. There you can learn more about her, how to join the National Marrow Donor Program and leukemia. For current updates visit her BLOG by CLICKING HERE.

Will you help her by joining the registry or by spreading the word that she needs more help and more people to register?

On August 24, 2009, 22 year old Janet Liang was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia, a form of blood cancer. Janet is currently living in the Bay Area and is undergoing chemotherapy in the hopes that she can attain a successful remission. If the chemo fails she will need a stem cell transplant. She will then be faced with the daunting task of locating a marrow match from the national or international registries after tests revealed that her only sibling is not a match. Processing new donor samples can takeup to 2 months or more so it is crucial for people to be tested asap before her need becomes critical.

Already in the registry? No matter how long ago you signed up you will remain in the National Registry until you turn 61 years old. If you move or change your phone number you can update your contact information by CLICKING HERE.

Last year more then 4,400 people missed their opportunity to save a life when Be The Match was unable to locate them after they were a preliminary match for a patient in need.

Extreme Home Makeovers Features a Bone Marrow Donor and Recipient

Did you miss last weeks episode of Extreme Home Makeovers? CLICK HERE to watch it on ABC.com. The Stott family has been through a lot. First Joey Stott got Leukemia. After receiving a bone marrow transplant from an anonymous donor located on the National Marrow Donor Program registry, her family suffered a second set back when their house caught fire and was damaged beyond repair by smoke and water damage.

Enter Ty Pennington and the Extreme Home Makeover crew. Not only did they build the Stotts a new house and barn for their sheep, they also brought Joey's bone marrow donor with them giving Joey her first opportunity to meet Tom since he saved her life. The picture above is Joey, seeing Tom walk out of the Extreme Home Makeover bus moments after being told he was there.

And this is Tom, one of the 7.4 million Americans who joined the National Marrow Donor Program in the hopes of someday saving a life.

Be sure you have a big box of Kleenex® with you when you watch this episode. It's a total tear jerker.

The best part is that it's a great segment about why to join the registry, what it's like to donate your marrow and there were even two donor drives held during the filming of this episode. And actor David Duchovny comes onsite and helps to build the new home for the Stotts. CLICK HERE to watch it on ABC.com.

A Message from Tami Day +135

"My back is definitely getting better but still have a ways to go. Went to see my Doctor today and he says everything looks good. He cut my fluids in half and I'm not taking as many meds."

So sounds like she's feeling better. FINALLY! I'll continue to update this blog whenever I receive a change from her most recent status.

Thanks for checking in!

No News is Good News

Well the reason I haven't posted any updates lately is because my information source has run dry. That translates to that Tami has been doing well enough on her own that my mom is no longer going to help her each day. I hate calling because you just never know when she might be taking a nap so I will send Tami an email right now and see if she can send me back an update on how she's doing :)

Wow I woke up this morning...

And there was snow!

Came up for a short visit to see Tami. She looks great! Her back is still sore from her muscle strains, but regarding her transplant she's doing really well. In fact her magnesium level has suddenly risen so she will be able to reduce the amount of magnesium she has to infuse each day. This may mean she won't have to keep infusing the big bag of fluid that comes along with the high dose of liquid magnesium she had been receiving each day for the past few months. So that's really good news!

And guess who else I got to see....

An Update from Tami

An email from Tami:

"If you didn't know I'm back home. Got back almost two weeks ago. I'm doing overall pretty good except for my back. Being on prednisone after the transplant has left my muscles really weak so it doesn't take much to pull something. I pulled my lower back and now my sides of my back. I'm going through physical therapy and also seeing a massage therapist and acupuncture therapist. It definitely has helped but I've got a little ways to go still.

If I haven't talked to you in awhile, I'm still catching up on email and vmail. Its been just great hearing from everyone. Thanks for everyone's support these past few months. I couldn't have gotten through all of this without you."

BLOOD & BONE MARROW DRIVE TODAY in HOUSTON, TX.

Please help our friend Roger, help others.

TODAY!
October 24, 2009
11:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m.
Questions? Call (786) 281-8316

Location: Gabby's
4659 Telephone Road
Houston, Texas

Roger will be hosting his first Blood & Bone Marrow Drive. The Gulf Coast Blood Center will be collecting the donations. They will be giving away free shirts. You will also be able to purchase the "Cancer Sucks / I Have MDS" wristbands for just a few dollars. "I Have MDS" is the name of Roger's cancer blog about his experience. Or you can CLICK HERE to order a wristband through Helping Tami.org. All proceeds go to Roger who has been unable to work since his transplant in March. He uses the money to help pay for parking at the hospital, pills and meals.

In the past 10 months Roger has received over 200 units of blood to keep him alive before and after receiving his stem cell transplant. He has been traveling down the long road of recovery since I met him earlier this year.

This is Roger losing his hair post-chemo to prepare for his transplant.

While Roger was more fortunate then Tami in that his sister was a perfect match, as a plumber by trade, he was uninsured when he was diagnosed delaying his treatment for a year until the transplant hospital was able to take him in as a patient in a special program for those without insurance.

After being the beneficiary of such generosity from the hospital and all of the people who had donated the blood and platelets he has used the past year, he wants to give back and help others. Will you drop by Gabbys and help him to make his drive a success? You can give blood or register to join the National Marrow Donor Program. Or do both!

Joining the marrow donor program takes about 10 minutes to fill out a registration form and to swab the inside of your mouth with a cotton swab. It's that easy!

Chinese and Asian Americans Please Help Me to Help Janet Liang

People this is the real deal. Twenty two year old Janet Liang is a patient in critical need. She was diagnosed just months ago with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (bi-phenotypic).

This is Janet's desperate truth, her plea to help her save her own life that I read last night in her most recent blog post. Many of the people who she thought would reach out to help her have not:

"I became distraught because an urgent email was sent from a coordinator at Asian Miracle Matches to 70 of my closest friends in Southern California that I was willing to burden. Only 2 of them replied. No, I’m not popular at all."

I am hoping that all of you will reach out to help her. There is something you can do. You can join the registry or if you already have I implore you to reach out to anyone you know who is of any Asian ethnicity (particularly if they are Chinese) and ask them if they have joined the registry.

Janet's match could be anyone you know and of any Aisan ethnicity whether they are a friend, family or extended family member, a colleague, neighbor, or anyone you might happen to meet in your day to day life. The base requirements are that they are 18-60 years of age and in good health.

If they say they are not in the registry please direct them to any of the following websites to learn more about the pain free registration process and the donation process that is not, contrary to popular beliefs, excruciatingly painful. Most people who donate their marrow or stem cells suffer from relatively little discomfort if any at all. Nausea and a bruised sensation is usually the worst of it. They can learn more about the donation process on theHelpingTami.org website by CLICKING HERE.

They can also learn where live drives are held nationwide or how to order a home test kit at:

Live Drives Nationwide Using their Zip Code Locater
The National Marrow Donor Program website: www.BeTheMatch.org

Southern California Live Drives
Asians for Miracle Matches website: www.AsianMarrow.org

Northern California Drives
Asian American Donor Program website: www.AADP.org

More words from Janet:

"There’s an overwhelming amount of guilt I feel and frustration, because all I can do is keep asking and begging. That’s all I’m good for these days with no guaranteed promise of the ability to return your favors. I also understand that many of you have fruitful, promising lives/futures and are extremely busy. All I can really tell you is that I have about 3-4 months time to come up with some kind of bone marrow donor match. That is nearly impossible. The pressure is on, as my doctors and bone marrow transplant coordinator continuously remind me of the time-sensitive nature of treating this disease. If not, they’ll continue to drag it on and on, keeping me alive with one chemo round after another until I become resistant to it and there’s no other alternative except an umbilical cord transplant, which will buy more time and is currently in the research/experimental stages."