3 ms·

Godspeed. Thank you for sharing your stories. For anyone reading here, one way to donate in general is The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society: https://www.lls.org/

by jph 8y ago

Godspeed. Thank you for sharing your stories. For anyone reading here, one way to donate in general is The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society: https://www.lls.org/ https://www.lls.org/ LLS funds blood cancer research, education and patient services. You may know of LLS because of its annual fundraiser event known as “Light the Night” and its fitness initiatives “Team in Training“.

stickfigure 8y ago
I'd like to add one other important (free!) way you can help: Sign up to be a marrow donor. In the US, here: https://bethematch.org https://bethematch.org Alex mentioned graft-vs-host disease. When you get a marrow transplant, the better the match, the more likely you are to survive. The bigger the database, the better chance of a good match. Seven years ago I lost a good friend to non-hodgkin's lymphoma. Cancer sucks.
- soy_comptroller 8y ago
  For non-US donors, check out WMDA[1] for information on joining a marrow donor list. Many countries have some sort of donor-sharing agreements. I know someone in California who received a donation from someone in Germany. [1] https://www.wmda.info/donor/become-a-donor/ https://www.wmda.info/donor/become-a-donor/
- sundvor 8y ago
  Signed up over a decade ago with Australian Red Cross blood service. Haven't heard anything but it's good knowing that if the call ever comes, I personally might save someone's life. (Donating O- helps in a more general way.)
  - m1n1 8y ago
    Haven't heard anything? You should be getting regular pings as they make sure they can reach you annually or more frequently.
    - sundvor 8y ago
      I'm an active blood donor so they do know how to reach me.
soy_comptroller 8y ago
LLS is an amazing resource. It is a great source of useful information for patients and families. Anyone going through a similar process knows the horrors of googling for information. You end up with all sorts of pseudo-science (e.g. "paleo cured my cancer"), false hopes (e.g. mouse trials which sort of address particular variants of mildly related diseases), and sensationalist terrifying stories of the horrors of chemo. It is also a great resource for finding support networks, both in-person and over the internet. (Seeing a therapist or joining a support group is so important for both patients _and_ those close to the patients!)

by jph 8y ago

stickfigure 8y ago

I'd like to add one other important (free!) way you can help: Sign up to be a marrow donor. In the US, here: https://bethematch.org https://bethematch.org Alex mentioned graft-vs-host disease. When you get a marrow transplant, the better the match, the more likely you are to survive. The bigger the database, the better chance of a good match. Seven years ago I lost a good friend to non-hodgkin's lymphoma. Cancer sucks.

soy_comptroller 8y ago
For non-US donors, check out WMDA[1] for information on joining a marrow donor list. Many countries have some sort of donor-sharing agreements. I know someone in California who received a donation from someone in Germany. [1] https://www.wmda.info/donor/become-a-donor/ https://www.wmda.info/donor/become-a-donor/
sundvor 8y ago
Signed up over a decade ago with Australian Red Cross blood service. Haven't heard anything but it's good knowing that if the call ever comes, I personally might save someone's life. (Donating O- helps in a more general way.)
- m1n1 8y ago
  Haven't heard anything? You should be getting regular pings as they make sure they can reach you annually or more frequently.
  - sundvor 8y ago
    I'm an active blood donor so they do know how to reach me.

soy_comptroller 8y ago

LLS is an amazing resource. It is a great source of useful information for patients and families. Anyone going through a similar process knows the horrors of googling for information. You end up with all sorts of pseudo-science (e.g. "paleo cured my cancer"), false hopes (e.g. mouse trials which sort of address particular variants of mildly related diseases), and sensationalist terrifying stories of the horrors of chemo. It is also a great resource for finding support networks, both in-person and over the internet. (Seeing a therapist or joining a support group is so important for both patients _and_ those close to the patients!)