Published February 23, 2016
MONROE, La. — LifeShare Blood Centers Marrow Donor Program, an affiliate of Be The Match, is
teaming up with the University of Louisiana Monroe to benefit local patient, Bryce
Boyd.
Five-month-old Boyd was diagnosed with Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome, a genetic disorder
that affects his body’s blood clotting abilities. Boyd is reliant on donated blood
and platelets to keep him alive until a stem cell or marrow donor match can be found.
“Finding a match, would mean life,” explains Boyd’s mother, Jasmine Boyd. “It means
saving his life.” Bryce has been receiving care at University Health in Shreveport
but is being transferred to Cincinnati Children’s Hospital where he will remain until
a matching donor can be located.
Patients typically find a match from someone the same race as them or that share similar
ancestry, so Boyd’s life-saving donor will most likely be African-American. Unfortunately,
because there aren’t enough African-American donors in the registry, the likelihood
of finding a perfect match for Bryce is only 19%.
ULM, Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, and The National Marrow Donor Program, Be The Match,
are hoping to change that statistic by raising awareness and by adding more donors,
of all races and nationalities to the registry.
To register with Be The Match, the donor must be between the ages of 18 and 44, in
good physical health, and willing to donate to a match. Registration takes about 10
minutes and only involves filling out some paperwork and four mouth swabs.
The marrow registry drive will take place on Thursday, February 25 at ULM Campus,
700 University Ave, Monroe, La., in the following locations and times:
- Student Union Building Information Desk, 10am – 4pm
- Quad (weather permitting), 10am – 4pm
- Schulze Dining Hall, 11am – 1pm
For more information about LifeShare’s Marrow Donor Program, contact coordinator Brian
Allison at 318-673-1534 or brian.allison@lifeshare.org.
