Become a bone marrow donor!

Sameer Bhatia, a technology entrepreneur and a former staff member of the American India Foundation, has been diagnosed with Acute Myelogenous Leukemia, which is a cancer of the blood.  He is in urgent need of a bone marrow transplant.

Over the past several weeks, a large number of volunteers have mobilized a nationwide campaign to help Sameer and Dr Vinay Chakravarthy, another young Indian who is suffering similarly from AML, improve their odds of finding a donor.

The greatest likelihood for a bone marrow match for Sameer and Vinay is from someone in the South Asian community.  However, very few South Asians are actually in the bone marrow registry. 

Bone marrow drives are being held around the country at companies, events, family get together's and other venues to get more people registered. The process is simple and takes just minutes. Registrants fill out some paperwork and contribute a "cheek swab" sample. 

Donating marrow used to be scary and uncomfortable – these days, it is much easier and is nearly as simple as a blood draw.

Team Vinay (www.helpvinay.org) and Team Sameer (www.helpsameer.org) are coordinating efforts for bone marrow registration among South Asians. Please visit these web sites for more details and become a bone marrow registrant.  Your action could be the one that helps to save their life!

Image: (Left) Bone marrow drive volunteers. (Right) Sameer in hospital after a round of chemotherapy.