The UNMC College of Dentistry is hosting a bone marrow cheek swab drive from noon to 3 p.m. Sept. 19 in Dixon Auditorium, located at 40th and Holdrege streets on the East Campus of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
The event was inspired by the plight of an incoming dentistry student, Colin Hays, who was recently diagnosed with acute myeloid leukemia (AML). AML patients who don’t have family matches must rely on donors from the national bone marrow registry.
The cheek swabs are used to identify people who would be possible matches for patients on the bone marrow transplant list — including Colin. During the event, information will be available on bone marrow donation.
AML is a cancer of the blood and bone marrow — the spongy tissue inside bones where blood cells are made. The word ‘acute’ in acute myelogenous leukemia denotes the disease’s rapid progression. It’s called myelogenous leukemia because it affects a group of white blood cells called the myeloid cells, which normally develop into the various types of mature blood cells, such as red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.”
For more on Colin’s story, click here.