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Eddy Says
Eddy Says: Become a life saver
By Eddy Temple-Morris | Published on Tuesday 22 January 2013
Eddy TM has an important message to share.
With Tinnitus Awareness Week coming up on 4 Feb, I was going to give you a behind the scenes look at the tinnitus album I’ve been putting together, and tell you how Chris Martin gave his blessing to a Coldplay remix, but that’s going to have to wait for now… something’s come up that’s way more urgent.
Bad news always comes in January. I had an email today from Julie Anne Murphy about my old friend and colleague Sonia, who used to work at Botchit & Scarper and now at Push PR. Many of you will know her as one of the hardest working pluggers in the game, who’s bent over backwards to help many of us in the past. Now it’s time for us to help her. She’s been diagnosed with a form of Leukaemia and we need to help find a bone marrow match to save her life.
They’re looking particularly at mixed race people, especially those with some Caribbean, Chinese and/or Indian heritage in the mix. Donating stem cells is like giving blood, it’s not as scary as it sounds, all I ask is that you read the email below and if you can help, or spread the word, the wider we can cast this net, the greater chance we have of saving our mutual friend. And even if you are not a match for Sonia, this simple act could help save another person suffering from this condition. Thank you for your time, eddy x
Ju’s email follows:
Sonia was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) in November 2012 and doctors have told us that a blood stem cell transplant is her best hope of survival. She currently going through cycles of chemotherapy while the doctors search for a donor. We need your help to get more people to register as a potential donor, not just to help save Sonia’s life, but potentially others too.
Sonia’s mother died of the same disease only just over a year ago, and now we’re having to go through the same thing again, and so you can understand why we really need to find a match for Sonia. We want to ask you all to spread this message as far and wide as you can to all friends and family, and particularly into communities with mixed white, Chinese, black Caribbean and Indian connections, as these are all part of Sonia’s heritage, and most likely to be where she’ll find a genetic match. These groups are also the most under-represented on donor registers.
The word ‘transplant’ probably sounds daunting, BUT joining the register and potentially becoming a donor is not complicated – you fill in a short form and provide a small saliva sample – it really is that easy. Once you’re on the register, you could come up as a match for someone like Sonia and potentially save their life. And donating your stem cells is not much different from giving blood and there’s no operation involved.
THE EASIEST WAY YOU CAN HELP:
If you’re 16-30, apply to join online here, where you’ll also find a short film explaining what’s involved and hopefully help you make a life changing decision.
You could also get in touch with the African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust, which is particularly active in encouraging people to join the register from under-represented groups – Black, Chinese, Indian – exactly the kind of people we need to help find Sonia a match, and save her life!
And if you’re 31-49, you’re not too old to donate, go here, or call the NBS Hotline on 0300 123 23 23 and ‘QUOTE R20’ and tell them you want to become a blood and bone marrow donor.
Or you can visit this link to find and book your nearest session. Just type in your home town or your postcode and you’ll find plenty to choose from. And you don’t even have to register before doing so. Just turn up on the day.
Please remember to tell them you want to register as a bone marrow donor too.
IF YOU’RE NOT IN THE UK:
