LIFESTYLE NEWS - When Lee-Ann, a vibrant 24-year-old who loved singing in her church choir, started losing weight dramatically, she knew something was wrong. But nothing could have prepared her for the words that would change her life: Acute Myeloid Leukaemia.
"When I heard the diagnosis, it felt like my world was crashing down. My first thought was my daughter – she’s only six years old,” she recalls.
Life hasn’t been the same since. Lee-Ann now spends most of her days in hospital, far from the choir and the music that used to fill her with joy. The hardest part? Missing precious moments with her daughter.
“My little girl recently started Grade 1, and I couldn’t attend her first day of school. That broke my heart.”
Despite it all, Lee-Ann remains unwavering in her hope: “I believe God never gives you a battle you cannot fight. I will overcome this.”
Lee-Ann
While Lee-Ann continues her fight, another family battles their own crisis. At just eight months old, baby Leo was diagnosed with MECOM-Associated Syndrome, a rare disorder that stops his bone marrow from producing blood cells.
Leo relies on continuous blood transfusions just to survive – 14 and counting. But these transfusions are only a temporary fix. His only hope is a stem cell transplant.
Leo’s parents, Andrew and Tarryn, have been on an emotional rollercoaster since his premature birth, which left him with a congenital heart condition and hearing loss. They’ve watched their son endure 23 medical specialists, multiple biopsies, and countless blood tests – all while holding on to hope that a matching donor will be found.
“Leo is simply the most wonderful, happy little soul. He is an absolute joy, with a contagious smile that warms the hearts of everyone he meets.
"Please help us help him. He’s holding on, but he urgently needs a donor,” they plead.
Baby Leo
South Africa’s diversity is one of its greatest strengths, yet it’s also a challenge when it comes to finding stem cell donors. Ethnic diversity in donor registries is crucial to saving lives, but there are still too few donors from diverse backgrounds.
During a drive to encourage donor registration. DKMS is the global leader in the facilitation of unrelated blood stem cell transplants.
Palesa Mokomele, Head of Community Engagement and Communications at DKMS Africa, emphasises the urgent need for more donors: “Both Lee-Ann and baby Leo’s stories remind us of the importance of registering as a stem cell donor because a diagnosis can affect anyone at any time. It could be the difference between life and death.”
You could be the match that gives someone like Lee-Ann or Leo a second chance at life.
Register today at www.dkms-africa.org and give hope to those fighting to survive.
About DKMS
DKMS is an international non-profit organization dedicated to the fight against blood cancer. It was founded in Germany in 1991 by Dr. Peter Harf and DKMS together with the organization’s over 1 200 employees and has since relentlessly pursued the aim of giving as many patients as possible a second chance at life.
With over 12 million registered donors, DKMS has succeeded in doing this more than 115 000 times to date by providing blood stem cell donations to those in need.
This accomplishment has led to DKMS becoming the global leader in the facilitation of unrelated blood stem cell transplants.
The organization has offices in Germany, the US, Poland, the UK, Chile, and South Africa.
DKMS is also heavily involved in the fields of medicine and science, with its own research unit focused on continually improving the survival and recovery rate of patients.
In its high-performance laboratory, the DKMS Life Science Lab, the organization sets worldwide standards in the typing of potential blood stem cell donors.
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