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STAMFORD, Conn. Justin Wexlers father and grandfather have both donated bone marrow to save the life of another. Now the 12-year-old boy is following in their footsteps.
However, he is not yet able to donate because the age range to register as a bon marrow donor is 18 to 55. (He plans to register once he is an adult.) But he will do the next best thing and run a bone marrow registration drive Sunday, Feb. 5.
Even though millions of people are registered as donors, six out of 10 patients never receive a donation. To be considered a match, eight out of 10 tissue characteristics have to be the same, said a pamphlet from Deutsche Knochenmarkspenderdatei, which translates to Bone Marrow Donor Center in German.
Right now, its like finding a needle in a haystack, Justin said, describing the need for more donors. When his grandfather donated to his sister, their other sister was not as close of a match, he said.
All people have to do to register is go to Justins drive, make sure theyre eligible, agree to enter the database and then swab the inside of their cheeks with Q-tips. The whole process takes about six minutes, he said.
The people who register with Justin will be entered into a database with DKMS. The organization will then match donors with patients in need.
We are looking for your saliva, Justin said with a smile.
Justin will register bone marrow donors from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 5, at the Jewish Community Center, 1035 Newfield Ave., Stamford. He knows the drive is Super Bowl Sunday but said the process is quick enough that people can swab their cheeks and be back in front of their televisions for kickoff.
Its a chance for people to be super heroes on Super Bowl Sunday, said Robin Wexler, Justins mother, of the tag line she and Justin came up with.
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