Marrow Drive - REGISTER NOW FOR FREE

We are so very thankful that the chance that Sebastian will need a bone marrow or stem cell transplant are very small.

But there are many other children living with cancer, and leukemia in particular, that are not so lucky. We have met families here that have been looking for months and years for donor matches for their children's much needed transplants. Sometimes siblings and other family members are not a match, so doctors search the marrow registry for other matches.

I am asking you to think about joining your national marrow registry. It usually costs around $50 or 50 EUR to do this - it involves a swab test of your inside cheek or a finger prick.

In the USA, there is a marrow drive - so you can join for FREE! For friends in Nebraska, I think the local drives are taking place in Omaha and Gretna this week! You can click here for more details and locations around the states:
http://www.marrow.org/NEWS/Events/Thanks_Mom/index.html

For friends in Austria, here is the local link:
http://www.stammzellspende.at/

I also have some friends in the states who are pregnant now. If you have not thought about banking your child's cord blood, please do so. And if you choose not to do this for yourself, I urge you to consider donating your cord blood to the national cord bank for other children in need. As opposed to banking cord blood for your own use, which can be quite expensive, DONATING it is free. Here is a link with more information:
http://www.marrow.org/HELP/Donate_Babys_Umbilical_CB/index.html