Seaford mother of three urges locals to join bone marrow register
Tracey Smith, 30, was diagnosed with the life threatening condition of leukaemia last October and has now been told that her only hope is a bone marrow transplant. Tracey is one of the lucky ones – a donor has been found overseas for her. But many thousands of people in the UK are not so lucky due to a desperate shortage of donors on the bone marrow register. Patients throughout the UK face long uncertain waits to find a donor and many will die without finding a match.
Tracey is now urgently calling for people to come forward and potentially save a life by joining the Anthony Nolan Trust’s Bone Marrow Register at a registration clinic to be held on Tuesday 3 March from 3.30 – 8pm at Tracey’s children’s school - Chyngton School, Millberg Road, Seaford, BN25 3ST.
Tracey said:
“When I was diagnosed last October it was a massive shock. There was no history of cancer in my family – leukaemia was something that happened to friends of friends or people in the papers, not to me. My husband and I have stayed positive about it, and we’re open about it with our three children but it’s obviously been difficult. My ten year old daughter asked my husband if I might die which was hard.”
There are currently 16,000 people worldwide in need of a bone marrow transplant, but because individual genetic makeup is so varied, the chance of finding a suitable donor can be slim. Many searches for patients are unsuccessful – a bone marrow donor whose tissue type matches theirs could mean the difference between life and death.
Tracey continued:
“I’m extremely lucky that a donor has been found for me from overseas. I asked the consultant why there wasn’t a donor here in the UK and he explained that it was because there simply aren’t enough donors on the register. A lot of people don’t find donors and I know how utterly catastrophic and devastating it would be not to find one – I’d be leaving behind three young children and my husband. I’m hoping that lots of people come to the registration clinic on 3rd March and join up – it’s really so easy. And actually donating is not a major procedure – as far as I’m aware it’s quite simple.”
The blood sample taken at the registration clinic is tested to establish the tissue type and the results stored on the charity’s confidential database. As a new member of the register the donor receives a registration card and written confirmation of being a potential life saver. A donor may be found to be a match for a patient almost immediately or may wait many years before being asked to donate – and in some cases may never donate at all if there is no match.
