31 for 21--Day 9

In the beginning, when you first get your diagnosis of Down syndrome, you also get  a LOT of information.  But since I started blogging and meeting families, I have learned so much more.  The good, the bad and the ugly...and by that we mean lukemia.

On our sidebar, we have two little girls who are in the midst of battling lukemia.  Ella Grace is 2 and Emily is just 1.  They are fighting for their lives right now and it just tears us apart to think of such little warriors fighting such an awful disease.  That is the ugly and bad news, the good new is...we can help and you can help!

It’s been a documented fact for decades that children with Down syndrome have a 10-30% higher incidence of developing leukemia then typical children.  The good news is that, although scary, it's pretty rare, even in children with Down syndrome. About 1 in 95 will get it (compare this to 1 in 2000 in typical children).


How high is the cure rate? There are different forms of this cancer. The two types that children get are ALL (acute lymphoblastic) and AML (acute myeloid). ALL survival rate is about 90% for kids under 5. AML survival rate is about 55% for kids under 15, EXCEPT for children with Down syndrome--their survival rate with AML is 85%. 


For children with Down syndrome, leukemia treatment is more successful than for other kids. It's likely due to a genetic mutation found only in Down syndrome children, new research shows. However, the same mutation also increases the kids' leukemia risk.
(information taken from this website:  http://www.down-syndrome-facts-and-fiction.com/leukemia.html)


So how can you help?  Make an easy life changing decision!  Join the National Marrow Donor Program!
Successful bone marrow transplants are often the only way to fight this disease.  Joining is free and easy and you could be saving someone's life someday...you could be the match for one of our friends...you could be our match someday...

You will simply fill out the forms online, they mail you a kit, you swab your cheek and send it in.  It is that simple.  If you are pregnant, you can also store blood cord for future use in your own family, or even DONATE your babies blood cord to help save someone else.  Be someone's hope...the answer to their prayers.

Do it for Ella Grace and Emily and Aubrey and all those other littles out there, with and without Down syndrome who are waiting on a match.

Click on Aubrey's button to take you to the National Marrow Donor Program site to join today and then come back and let us know you did.  Let's see how many people we can get to join this month!!!