5-year-old Karabo needs us all to help him find a blood stem cell donor as soon as possible; this brave little boy is fighting his biggest battle – so let’s rally to find his perfect match!
South Africa (28 July 2022) – DKMS Africa is raising awareness to help 5-year-old Karabo beat his cancer! He has reached a point in his treatment where he now needs to find a blood stem cell match.
Karabo was diagnosed with Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH). He has struggled so much during his cancer battle, briefly losing his ability to see or walk, a moment that terrified everyone involved in his case. Thankfully, both returned and with it, a much stronger dose of hope.
“This super social little boy who loves Batman and cars has overcome a great deal fighting this disease. In May 2020, he lost his eyesight and ability to walk. After regaining both, his mother, Mapule is hopeful that her baby will beat cancer. You could give this single mother of 3 even more hope by taking the selfless step of helping save her baby’s life.”
DKMS Africa shared that a blood stem cell is an immature cell that can develop into all types of blood cells, including white blood cells, red blood cells, and platelets. Blood stem cells are found in the peripheral blood and the bone marrow. Also called a hematopoietic stem cell. By finding a potential match for Karabo, his own body will be able to use these cells to become stronger in his fight against HLH.
Registering to become a blood stem cell donor takes 5 minutes on the DKMS website. It’s free, requires no surgery, and does not depend on blood type.
Once registered, a swab kit will be sent to you and then collected so your swabs can be sent to the lab for typing before you are added to the global registry. If you are a match for someone, DKMS will contact you directly.
“The chances of being a match for someone are currently 1 in 100,000 and a South African is diagnosed with a blood cancer or blood disorder every 72 minutes.
Black, Coloured, Indian, and Asian patients have a 19% chance of finding a match and a second chance at life.
Matches are based on tissue type and a patient is most likely to match with someone of the same ethnic group which is why having a diverse donor registry improves the chances of these patients finding a match. You will only be required to donate your stem cells if you are found to be a match for someone. Register now and give hope to Karabo and many patients like him”
DKMS has registered over 10.5 million donors globally and facilitated more than 91,000 transplants; this means 91,000 second chances of life for patients suffering from a life-threatening blood disorder.
Having more donors improves the chances that a patient will be able to find their match. Getting more people to register means correcting longstanding misconceptions about what it means to be a bone marrow donor. Being a donor is not as painful, invasive or permanent as many people believe.
If you are between the ages of 18 – 55 and in general good health, request a swab kit at dkms-africa.org. It starts with a swab, and it ends with saving a life! If you are curious about what it is like being a donor, 21-year-old Luke recently got to donate after waiting for 3-years to be someone’s match. He shared his experience here.
There are other ways to support blood cancer and blood disorder patients if you are not eligible to donate blood stem cells. You can help DKMS Africa spread awareness, host donor drives, contribute financially and order and distribute swab kits to your network. You can find out more here.
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