For anyone who could not make the January/February Washington University Bone Marrow Registry drive, the Washington University Marrow Registry is offering one more chance this year to join the National Marrow Donor Program.
The registry for the first time will be free. It will be held Friday, March 24, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Anheuser-Busch Hall, Room 404, Washington University Law School.
More than 3,000 people in the United States, including 30 in the St. Louis area, need a bone marrow transplant for a chance at a healthy life.
The students of the Washington University Marrow Registry are hosting an extra drive this year in honor of Matthew Pearl.
Matthew, a second-grader from Eureka, Mo., suffers from Fanconi anemia, a rare life-threatening blood disorder for which the only treatment currently being used is bone-marrow transplant. Matthew is in urgent need of his life-saving bone marrow transplant; so far, no match has been found. Mathew’s mother’s online journal (www.alexandmatt.com/journal) details the difficulty and heartbreak of the situation.
To enroll, participants must be between 18-60 and in good health. Participants will be asked a number of medical questions in the screening process, and a small sample of blood will be drawn to determine marrow type. For more information, please go to the new Web site address. http://sugroups.wustl.edu/~wumr/. Or, contact: Marla Esser WU Marrow Registry Alumni Advisor at mjesser1@charter.net or 314-740-7251 (cell) .