With the new year in full swing, we wanted to share a life update in the works. Last month, on my birthday, we received an unexpected delivery: an overnight shipment from NMDP (formerly Be The Match). NMDP is a nonprofit that helps save the lives of patients with blood cancers and disorders. The letter let us know WC was matched as a potential donor for a 69-year-old man.
The letter arriving on December 6 was like a heavenly birthday gift sent from my dad. You may know he passed away on April 15, 2021 after a 6 1/2 year battle with leukemia. Specifically, dad had Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML). To put it simply, AML is a fast-growing blood cancer where the body produces abnormal blood cells.
After initial diagnosis, dad first underwent a bone marrow transplant in 2015 from my brother, Robbie. A few years later, after relapse, he underwent a stem cell transplant from my cousin, Danny. The stem cell transplant actually took place while WC and I were on our honeymoon in May 2017.
Fortunately, dad was able to utilize family members for his donations. This is not always the case for a leukemia diagnosis. Our NMDP representative told us finding a full match can be like winning the lotto for some patients.
WC and I initially signed up for Be The Match back in 2016, but it wasn’t intentional. We were sitting at a restaurant in Jacksonville when we were approached by team members from the organization. They were going table to table explaining about the non-profit and encouraging people to sign up. We didn’t hesitate knowing what my dad went through during his first bout in 2014-2015. At the time, we certainly didn’t know how much more fight he would need in the coming years.
A second coincidence on my birthday: we were heading out the door to a movie when the NMDP delivery arrived. I wanted to see the adaptation of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever to celebrate my birthday as the book holds a special place in my heart. During dad’s final hospital stay in early 2021, the book passed around our family. I read it while sitting in the car waiting for dad to undergo a treatment (it was post-COVID times and he wasn’t allowed to have company during outpatient treatments). A few days later, dad was admitted into the hospital and read the book during his stay. The book passed between WC, my grandmother, and several other family members. The spunky Herdmans brought a smile to all of our faces. If you haven’t read it or seen the movie, go do it!
From the movie theater parking lot that day, we took a phone call as the first step in the process and learned the third coincidence: the patient in need of transplant is also diagnosed with AML.
After the initial conversation, WC had a longer interview on his health history and went for a subsequent blood test. His blood was sent to the man’s doctors and WC was selected as the best match for transplant. From there, he had a follow-up call to learn more about transplant logistics and then a follow-up appointment for a more significant blood draw (12 vials!) as one final step.
What’s Next in our Be The Match Process:
WC is scheduled to start daily injections on February 1 to stimulate the stem cell production in his bone marrow. On February 4, we’ll fly to Tempe, Arizona for his transplant the following day.
WC hasn’t hesitated to say “yes” a single time throughout the process. I hope we can save another family just a little bit of the heartbreak and stress we’ve been through. I’ll never stop missing my dad, but it will mean so much if someone else can live because of what we learned through dad’s cancer journey. I know he would be so proud of WC.
The patient WC is donating for is not from the U.S. which was also a surprise. We learned NMDP supports patients internationally! Given how much we love to travel, it means a lot we can make a difference for a family in a region we love to visit.
We’ll share more next month from Arizona. In the meantime please consider this: you too could “Be the Match” and save someone’s life. Please consider joining the registry.
In Loving Memory: Robert “Bob” Joseph Wolski, Jr.:
