Of course as I was reading this, I couldn't help but think about the fact that my answer to "Why" is different than most people racing. The Fundraising for Dr Guinan's research is "Why" for Genine and I, and our "mission" has been brought back into focus this week.
My cousin Katie was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia and has already started the chemotherapy. She's married and has 4 young children.
Those of you that have gone through this with someone close, can appreciate how you feel totally helpless. You know you aren't going to wake up one day and think up a solution to this problem. It is out of your control. Fortunately there are things you can do to help that are in your control.
1) Register to be a Bone Marrow Donor. Typically all that is required is a mouth swab. Other times the registry is held along with a blood drive. Everyone should be on the list.
2)Donate Platelets. You can do this every 3 days but no more than 24 times a year. Start by checking with your local Red Cross. Next check with your local hospital's oncology ward.
3) Give Blood. Find a blood drive near me.
My never ending chest cold suddenly doesn't seem like such a big problem. I will get over it. Then I'll get back to training. You know Why.
2 comments:
I am so sorry to hear about the diagnosis! Where is she seeking treatment?
We will continue to our quests as warriors against this disease!
I messed up. We originally thought it was AML which is what Mom and Nathan had. I believe she has ALL. (tough getting all the information from Nebraska, hoping care pages will be set up soon).
She did start chemo but with ALL they can do a much slower and longer treatment. So she is now home with a ton of pills. Not exactly sure when she goes in for round 2.
I'll post more as I find out more.
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