A St. Albert family is grateful that somewhere in the world a donor has stepped forward to donate the life-saving bone marrow that their 12-year-old daughter needs.
Alex Pasichnyk went into total bone marrow failure last June. She was diagnosed with a rare form of aplastic anemia. She has been out of school and receiving blood transfusions ever since.
Her only hope was a bone marrow transplant. That rare gift came this week in news that there was a match for Alex. Her parents Lisa and Sheldon Pasichnyk continue to advocate to encourage more people to register for bone marrow donation. They know how great the need is for others.
“We couldn’t have made it this far without the love and support from all of you,” Lisa Pasichnyk wrote in a post on the ‘All in for Alex’ Facebook page.
It is not yet known whether the match for Alex was generated from one of a series of special bone marrow registry clinics held in St. Albert, Sherwood Park or Edmonton. It is also possible that it came from the one of 70 other registries in countries around the world that have a combined registry of more than 23 million willing donors.
Despite those staggering numbers the odds of finding a match are overwhelmingly poor; an estimated 14 million to one. In addition to matching the patient's blood type, there are at least 10 antigens deemed important in matching bone marrow from a donor to a patient. It almost takes a miracle to find a match, but the odds are improved with more people in the registry.
While Alex is prepped for the surgery slated for Jan. 17 in Calgary, there are an estimated 800 to 1,000 Canadians still waiting for a life-saving match. Many more people around the world are waiting for bone marrow matches.
People interested in becoming a bone marrow donor can find out how at www.onematch.ca, a non-profit agency that runs the bone marrow transplant registries. Anyone who is healthy and between the ages of 17 and 35 can visit www.onematch.ca to have a cheek swab kit mailed to them directly.
One Match belongs to an international registry that can search more than 23 million donors in more than 70 registries in other countries. International registries have significantly increased the odds of finding a matching donor for any patient in the world.
Even with millions of potential donors on registries worldwide, a perfect stem cell match isn't always available. One Match seeks donors between 17 and 35 from all ethnic backgrounds to build the diversity of its database by increasing the number of potential donors with diverse antigens.
Patients like Alex are counting on you. If you or a family member were waiting for a bone marrow transplant you would want every possible advantage. It's a small act that can make a very big difference in someone's life.
