Please help save Connor!

Connor is a 5 year old Korean American boy who desperately needs a bone marrow match. Read his aunt Michelle's plea for help:


"Connor is my brother's and sister in law's only child. He’s a beautiful 5-year old who is an avid swimmer, loves all things Ben10, and considers the little mermaid Ariel his girlfriend.

We just learned that he has X-linked hyper IGM. This clinical sounding disease is a devastating immuno-deficiency. The 1 in a million diagnosed usually succumb to liver cirrhosis or lung infection at an early age, the lucky few may survive into their mid-20’s.

Connor’s dad, my brother, says Connor never complains about the many needles that the nurses poke him with during his monthly blood transfusions or about the innumerable flus, stomach aches and other infections he’s had since he was born.

Before I learned about Connor’s disease, I never knew how difficult it is for minority patients to find bone marrow matches. Because matching is dependent on genetics, Connor’s donor will most likely be of the same ethnicity.

A bone marrow transplant is the only hope he has. It’s the only known cure.

Please join the bone marrow registry. You can register online at www.aadp.org or www.bethematch.org (use promo code TeamConnor) - it takes 10 minutes to join.

Please help save Connor and others like him. Thank you."

Michelle (Connor’s Aunt)

*Please help spread the word and join Saving Connor Fan page on Facebook. Asians are under-represented in the bone marrow registry. You can help save a life!

Please Help and Sign Up to Be a Bone Marrow Donor

Did you know that Asians are under-represented in the bone marrow registry? People with life threatening illnesses, like Leukemia and Lymphoma are waiting anxiously for a bone marrow match to have a chance to get cured. These days no blood draw is needed to register, a simpler process of using cheek swabs is used.

Below are some faces of hope that are waiting for someone like you to help! Please consider signing up. This issue is very personal to me as I am a Leukemia survivor. Here, at Little Seouls, we will do our part in advocating for those in need of a bone marrow on a regular basis. If you know someone who needs our help, feel free to email us and we gladly post their info here.

Above is a picture of Theo (18) who was born in South Korea and was adopted in 1990 by Mike and Juli's family. He was diagnosed with a rare form of Leukemia and is currently waiting for a bone marrow match. His family have gone to Korea to search for his birth family in hopes of getting a bone marrow match, but their attempts at locating them were unsuccessful.

Next to Theo, is a picture of Nico (10) who is half Korean and half French. He was diagnosed with Leukemia at the age of 6. Due to his mixed heritage, finding a match becomes even harder. He is currently waiting to find a suitable donor.

Below is a message from Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches.

Have you wondered how it feels to save someone's life?

Every day, thousands of patients just like Theo Daniels are searching for a life-saving donor someone like you. The Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches is dedicated to creating an opportunity for all patients to receive the marrow transplant they need, when they need it.

Millions have joined the NMDP Registry, but there are still not enough donors to meet the needs of all patients. We need your help!

Join the NMDP Registry:
Join online at http://join.marrow.org. When asked to provide a "Promo Code", please enter <4korean>. This code ends on 6/30/09

Joining is easy. Patients need donors who are between the ages~of 18 and 60, in good general health, and are willing to donate to any patient in need.

You can join online at no cost because we are covering the costs to add new members to the Registry. Please note that our funding is limited.