Bone Marrow Donor Drive in the Park
Dear Friends, 2/7/10
The Jada Bascom Foundation was invited to participate in a Bone Marrow Donor Drive in Golden Gate Park this morning following the Kaiser 1/2 marathon. The drive was promoted to help find a match for Dr. Viet Lam. We enrolled 109 potential donors with the registry. I would like to introduce you to Dr. Lam. She is from Michigan and is of Vietnamese and Chinese descent. She has B-cell lymphoma and is in urgent need of a bone marrow transplant. She is currently being treated at Stanford Hospital in the Bay Area, and without the transplant she will surely not survive.
Here is her story:
I would like to introduce myself and ask for help in search of a potential cure. My name is Viet Lam and I am 37 years old. I am grateful for the many wonderful opportunities that were given to me. I was born and lived in Vietnam for eleven years before my two siblings and I defected on a small boat. After refugee camps, we settled in the United States of America. Through the generosity and the kindness of many people, I graduated from college and went on to obtain a medical degree.
Practicing internal medicine in California allowed me to serve a diverse community. Yet, I did not truly grasp what my patients and their families go through until May 2007 when unexpectedly, I was diagnosed with an advanced aggressive Large B-cell Lymphoma. How could it be possible when I led such an active life? I did not have significant symptoms, except intense itching. After going through the usual emotional stages, I was determined to overcome this obstacle. With the help of a great medical team and loved ones, I successfully went through eight cycles of R-CHOP chemotherapy. Equipped with a new life perspective, I lived each day to its fullest. In 2009, a wave of suspicion and fear crashed over me when the same intense itching and new profound fatigue hit me. It was confirmed that I had widespread recurrence. My determination and optimism did not reward me with a remission after an additional three cycles of R-ICE chemotherapy. I do not have a matched donor in my family, like 70% of patients needing a marrow transplant. Therefore, my only chance for a potential cure is an unrelated donor match.
My Chinese Vietnamese ethnicity provides me not only a unique life perspective, but it also makes it much more difficult to find a match. This is why I am asking you, particularly those from a Non-Caucasian background, to consider being a potential donor. There is a tremendous and urgent need for thousands of people who continually hope for a miracle. I am encouraged and hopeful that we can expand our national registry and particularly those of under-represented backgrounds. Through your awareness and support, I believe that we can both close the registry gap and provide a second chance at life for those thousands of patients. I thank you for learning more about the National Marrow Donor Program and for the gift of life.
Dear Friends, 2/7/10
The Jada Bascom Foundation was invited to participate in a Bone Marrow Donor Drive in Golden Gate Park this morning following the Kaiser 1/2 marathon. The drive was promoted to help find a match for Dr. Viet Lam. We enrolled 109 potential donors with the registry. I would like to introduce you to Dr. Lam. She is from Michigan and is of Vietnamese and Chinese descent. She has B-cell lymphoma and is in urgent need of a bone marrow transplant. She is currently being treated at Stanford Hospital in the Bay Area, and without the transplant she will surely not survive.
Here is her story:
I would like to introduce myself and ask for help in search of a potential cure. My name is Viet Lam and I am 37 years old. I am grateful for the many wonderful opportunities that were given to me. I was born and lived in Vietnam for eleven years before my two siblings and I defected on a small boat. After refugee camps, we settled in the United States of America. Through the generosity and the kindness of many people, I graduated from college and went on to obtain a medical degree.
Practicing internal medicine in California allowed me to serve a diverse community. Yet, I did not truly grasp what my patients and their families go through until May 2007 when unexpectedly, I was diagnosed with an advanced aggressive Large B-cell Lymphoma. How could it be possible when I led such an active life? I did not have significant symptoms, except intense itching. After going through the usual emotional stages, I was determined to overcome this obstacle. With the help of a great medical team and loved ones, I successfully went through eight cycles of R-CHOP chemotherapy. Equipped with a new life perspective, I lived each day to its fullest. In 2009, a wave of suspicion and fear crashed over me when the same intense itching and new profound fatigue hit me. It was confirmed that I had widespread recurrence. My determination and optimism did not reward me with a remission after an additional three cycles of R-ICE chemotherapy. I do not have a matched donor in my family, like 70% of patients needing a marrow transplant. Therefore, my only chance for a potential cure is an unrelated donor match.
My Chinese Vietnamese ethnicity provides me not only a unique life perspective, but it also makes it much more difficult to find a match. This is why I am asking you, particularly those from a Non-Caucasian background, to consider being a potential donor. There is a tremendous and urgent need for thousands of people who continually hope for a miracle. I am encouraged and hopeful that we can expand our national registry and particularly those of under-represented backgrounds. Through your awareness and support, I believe that we can both close the registry gap and provide a second chance at life for those thousands of patients. I thank you for learning more about the National Marrow Donor Program and for the gift of life.
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