Greetings.
This is the fifty-sixth in a series of DAILY NANCY UPDATES I will be posting until the amazing Nancy Neufeld Callaway is in full remission and we have kicked her leukemia on its ass.
If you'd like to be automatically notified of updates to this blog-- just enter your email address in the window on the right beneath Nancy's picture and follow the prompts!
BREAKING NEWS
Back to UCLA.
We've been at the clinic since 9AM, so a bit of a long day for the Sunshiny Superwarrior Goddess. But her ANC (immune system) numbers are low-- so they had to determine whether or not Nancy could have chemo first. Then once the doctor finally gave it a thumbs up-- the dosage alone takes 2 hours. Good times! But as I just told her-- there's no use complaining about traffic when you're in it.
HEADLINES
I know I already posted all this information yesterday-- so if you've already read about our search for a Bone Marrow Transplant donor and how you could help-- thanks for stopping by, and feel free to move along.
But in case you missed it...
A lot of you have very kindly asked if there's any way that you can be tested to see if you're a match. And it turns out there is... with a few important, unavoidable caveats.
1. GENDER AND BLOOD TYPE ARE NOT AN ISSUE. But like Nancy, you need to be of Eastern European Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry. Genetically speaking, that gives you the best chance of being in the right ballpark as a potential donor.
2. The younger you are, the better. Apparently, as we age, just like everything else in our bodies, our cells become less and less robust. So bonus points if you're under 40. But bone marrow beggars can't be choosers-- so if you're over 40, but passed #1-- you can still donate.
3. There are two primary ways to be tested. The first is called:
Here's what you need to know going in. It's free to be tested on BeTheMatch, but if you become an approved donor-- it means you're available to anyone in need of a bone marrow transplant-- not just Nancy. What's more, if you're over 44-- the test costs $100. And regardless of age, it takes about 3-4 months to get results.
4. The second option is a private lab, where you would only be tested as a potential donor for Nancy. That one is called:
Even though it's reputable, the results are much faster, and the test is focused on an exclusive match for Nancy-- what bothers both of us about the service is that it costs $195 for anyone to be tested, no matter how young or old you might be.
Still... they're the best options we can offer to anyone who thinks they might like to be tested as a potential donor. And in either case, please include Nancy's email address (neufaway@mac.com) as well as our transplant supervisor Megan Wilson (MEWilson@mednet.ucla.edu) so they'll also receive a copy of your testing results.
Of course, if for any reason you can't or don't want to be tested-- that's okay, too. But please give us a heads up if you're willing and able-- so we can alert Nancy's team of physicians.
Of course, if for any reason you can't or don't want to be tested-- that's okay, too. But please give us a heads up if you're willing and able-- so we can alert Nancy's team of physicians.
And thanks for reading all this-- not to mention considering any of it.
Because we know you feel the same way we do.
WE LOVE NANCY, and...
ALL IS WELL!
❌⭕💜‼️
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