Saving A Life One Bone Marrow Registration at a Time

By Nadi Crow, Reporter

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By Ellen Kurt

Story Created: Jan 5, 2013 at 7:22 PM CDT

Story Updated: Jan 5, 2013 at 7:46 PM CDT

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Each year more than 10,000 people get a leukemia or lymphoma diagnosis. A bone marrow registry in Cedar Rapids Saturday could help those fighting the disease find a cure.

It only took each person about ten minutes.

“It was very simple painless a good easy smooth process,” possible donor Tony Brimeyer said.

A good scrub with four cotton swabs on a Saturday morning at the New Bo City Market to save a life.

“It's a great way to get yourself on this list that's so important,” Impact CR’s Amber Mussman said.

Do a little bit of this and a little bit of paperwork and this packet gets mailed in to the "Be the Match Registry."

It’s a database where someone with a blood cancer could find a donor, their ticket to a clean bill of health.

“This often is the best and sometimes the only chance that people have to survive a blood cancer of this type,” Mussman said.

And just like getting signed up, helping out and donating isn't difficult either.

“If you are a possible match they'll get a hold of you. There's a series of smaller tests you'll go through then just to make sure you're a match and then it’s a pretty free possible,” Mussman said.

Mussman’s father had leukemia and so did Brimeyer's mother. It's a cancer that doesn't discriminate age, sex, race or religion. But a database can join together the perfect pair despite those differences.

“It’s a great idea it’s just a great feeling to know I could help somebody out,” Brimeyer said.

And plenty of people helped iincrease the chance to help someone in the fight against cancer and on the road to recovery. If you'd like to learn more about the registry click here.

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