One St. Louis family  - 4 boys with a rare blood disease for which bone marrow transplants are the only cure.

The 2 older brothers Sean a Sophomore at Lindenwood and Patrick a Junior at CBC are in immediate need of a marrow match and they are a perfect match to each other- so one donor can save them both.

Most people don't realize that to register is a swab of the inside of each cheek. It's that simple- and the second and more important information is that donation is NOT the awful process that is depicted on TV shows.

If you are a match then donation is either an I.V. where blood is drawn and necessary cells are removed- your  blood returned.

Or if marrow is needed for a better result for the recipient- you go under a mild anesthesia a needle is used to draw marrow and you will have  a sore hip for about a week. Of course- you've saved a life.  

We are hosting the 5th local drive at Ladue Horton Watkins H.S. on April 28th- 10am-4pm. It takes about 15 minutes to register and we will have a kids corner for small kids while parents register. If you can't make it to the drive- you can register at: getswabbed.org  and they will send you a free cheek swab kit!

READ RELATED ARTICLE: Bone Marrow Brothers