Countywide : Bone Marrow Donors Sought to Aid Girl
The Orange County chapter of the American Red Cross is looking for potential bone marrow donors to help save the life of a 4-year-old Iranian American girl in Northern California.
Mana Khorashadi, who lives in Santa Clara, is critically ill with leukemia and has no relatives with a matching marrow type, Red Cross spokeswoman Kara Lakkees said.
Because tissue type is inherited, like hair and skin color, doctors have a better chance of finding a match from donors within Mana’s ethnic group.
About 70% of patients who need marrow transplants have no relatives with matching tissue types, Lakkees said.
To help Mana and others, the Red Cross will hold a bone marrow donor drive from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Student Center at UC Irvine.
Those interested in donating marrow will be tested and registered, so that if they don’t match Mana’s type, they may help another patient.
Potential donors are asked to pay a $22.50 testing fee, but money has been raised to waive the fee for those who cannot afford it, Lakkees said. The Red Cross accepts contributions.
Information: (800) 627-7692.
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