THREE potential bone marrow donors failed to show up for a medical examination to see whether their bone marrow was compatible with a Shenzhen man with leukemia.
The Data Bank of Chinese Stem Cell Donors, also known as the China Marrow Donor Program (CMDP), identified five registered volunteers who could possibly have matching bone marrow for Zhong Hui, 20, a student at the Law School at the Guangdong University of Technology, Southern Metropolis Daily reported yesterday.
Although two of the volunteers had been persuaded to take a further test, the other three had not appeared by Sunday, the paper said.
To save our boy s life, we hope the three volunteers take the additional test, said Zhong s parents.
An ambassador to Shenzhen s voluntary blood donation and TV anchor, Dong Chao, said now that these people had registered as bone marrow donors, they should keep their promise, especially when there was a good chance of a successful match and the patient was in a critical condition.
Zhong was diagnosed with leukemia last year during a medical examination when he applied to join the Army.
His treatment had cost his parents all their savings and they had even sold their apartment to finance their son s treatment at Guangdong People s Hospital, the paper said.
The couple were living in a small rented apartment in Bao an District.
A manager at the Shenzhen Blood Center, identified only as Lu, said the bone marrow transplant was the only hope for the survival of leukemia patients. There were around 4 million patients waiting for a transplant each year.
However, since most families had only one child, there had been a decline in the number of matching donors, Lu said.
(Martin Li)
