Thursday, July 03, 2008

I am a wife, stepmom, daughter and sister. And I am a two-time survivor of acute leukemia.

I was diagnosed in 2002. After chemotherapy and nearly five years in remission I relapsed last October.

Without a bone marrow transplant, I believe there was no hope for my long-term survival. I think about what those words mean, would have meant, to my family -- there is "no hope."

Similar to more than 70 per cent of patients in need of bone marrow or stem cells, I had no donor match within my family. I needed the gift of an unrelated donor. And, in January in intensive care, "hope" was delivered to me.

I can thank the doctors, nurses, and the other staff of the transplant team, but I can never truly thank the biggest hero -- my anonymous marrow donor somewhere in the world who made the choice to join a donor registry.

In a small attempt to pay it forward, I'd like to urge, better yet beg, your readers to visit www.onematch.ca or call 1-888-2-DONATE for information on joining the registry which is managed by Canadian Blood Services.

What if you knew you were a match, right now, for someone whose life is being stolen by cancer or another marrow disease, and your donation could save them? If it were your spouse, your child, or your parent, what would you do?

Tiffany Hopper,

Petawawa