Maggie Murry’s four sons are battling Diamond Blackfan Anemia, a rare blood disorder that can be treated and cured with a bone marrow transplant. This is a rare disease that affects approximately 500 in the United States and four of the cases are in one family – the Murrys. All four boys were diagnosed when they were babies and have been searching for the only cure available to them; a bone marrow transplant match. This means that they have been recruiting individuals to register and become bone marrow donors. The Murrys have been instrumental in planning bone marrow drives and spreading the word about bone marrow donation. Matches have been found for others in need of a bone marrow transplant, but they are still searching for a match for their sons.
The Murry family works with Delete Blood Cancer, DKMS, who is the largest bone marrow donor center in the world. Many blood cancer patients also are in search of bone marrow matches. The odds of finding a bone marrow match range from one in 20,000 to one in millions.
A Message from Maggie
“We want people to know how simple it is to get on the registry and how rewarding it would be to donate. To save someone’s life – to be someone’s hero. It’s a blessing to know that our efforts have found matches for some of the 10,000 people waiting on the transplant list. We believe there is a match out there for our boys and we mean to find it.”
The Murry Family from Delete Blood Cancer on Vimeo.
The Murry family supports and attends several bone marrow drives in the area. Bone marrow drives consist of volunteers getting a cheek swab and joining the bone marrow registry. The next drive is planned for July 13, 2013 at the Kansas City T-Bones baseball game. The Murry’s goal is to register 1,500 people this summer to put them at the 20,000 mark by the end of August.
If you cannot attend a drive, you can register online to join the bone registry. Volunteers can fill out all of the “paperwork” online and then DKMS will mail you an at-home-swab kit.
Follow the Murry family on their Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/MarrowForMurrys.
Thank you Maggie for letting us share your story.
