Friends host event at local shop to find life-saving matches
(BOULDER, CO): Professional triathlete Amy Cottrill Marsh wasn’t expecting anything out of the ordinary when she went in for a routine blood test after a summer season spent training in Flagstaff, AZ and racing abroad. However, a few oddities in her results lead her doctor to request more tests. On December 23, the 4-time Ironman and 2-time Iron-distance champion was diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML), a fast-developing cancer of the blood cells. As a triathlete, Amy knows about the endurance and patience needed to finish the long race, and that is what she intends to do in her fight against cancer. To combat this disease trying to take her life, Amy will need a stem cell transplant.
Stem Cell and Bone Marrow transplantation is a treatment designed to knock out the patient’s current immune system and reintroduce functioning blood cells from a donor. Siblings have a 25% chance of being a match, but 7 out of 10 patients must turn to the national bone marrow registry. Less than half of patients who must rely on a stranger from the registry receive the life-saving transplant they need. Unfortunately, neither Amy’s brother nor anyone out of the 11 million people in the donor registry is a match for Amy.
Amy’s friends living in Boulder are hoping to change this by hosting a bone marrow donor registration event through the Sharing America’s Marrow (SAM) campaign. They are hoping to sign up as many people as possible between the ages of 18 and 55 who could be the cure for Amy or another patient needing a transplant.
All it takes is a cheek swab and a consent form to join the donor registry. Members of the Boulder community can come sign up to be a potential match for a patient fighting blood cancer on April 4th at Colorado Multisport from 10:00am to 3:00pm. Boulder Bodyworker, Rally Sport Gym, RAD-Real Athletic Diets, and Colorado Multisport will be providing coupons and giveaways to the first hundred people who show up to register or get more information on being a donor.
For more information, please contact Sharing America’s Marrow at info@sharemarrow.com
About Sharing America’s Marrow (SAM): Sharing America’s Marrow (SAM) is a cross-country quest to eradicate the myths of bone marrow donation, spread information regarding joining the registry, and sign up as many people as possible to be potential bone marrow donors. For more information visit their website at www.sharemarrow.com.
