By Rebekah Castor (Syracuse, N.Y.) — One Manlius Police Sergeant is fighting more than just bad guys. For the past 11 years, Sgt. Ken Hatter has been battling non-hodgkins lymphoma as well. Now, his only chance for survival is a bone marrow transplant.
Volunteers in the Manlius community are doing their part to help Sgt. Hatter. Thursday night, volunteers held the fourth blood drive, hoping to find that one person who is a match for Hatter.
“I think they’ll just keep having these things [donor drives] until they find someone,” one volunteer said. “I mean, this is his only chance.”
To get on the registry, it’s as simple as a mouth swab. Doctors will then use your DNA to see if you’re a match for anyone who is battling blood cancer. You must be between the ages of 18 and 55, and be free of any diseases and injuries to donate.
There was a significant amount of volunteers at the donor drive. Every single one of them also registered for the list.
“The support is just everything,” Hatter said. “I mean every law enforcement agency, people that I’ve never met before, different counties, complete strangers, family, friends, they’ve stepped right up. They’re doing everything in their power.”
Only 1 in every 430 people on the list are actually a match for someone, according to DKMS, a non-profit organization that registers donors. Hunter Sáenz, a local news reporter in Wisconsin, is one of those people who got the call.
Sáenz underwent the bone marrow donation process earlier this month and says it was the experience of a lifetime.
“It is so rare that I was a match with this person,” Sáenz said. “This person basically won the lottery, but I tell my friends that I feel like I did.”
Sáenz says the process wasn’t painful and believes bone marrow donation has a negative stigma that needs to be crushed. He felt only slight fatigue and discomfort the days leading up to the donation.
The process works by separating your bone marrow out of your bones and into your bloodstream. A few days before your donation, you do injections that will seep the bone marrow into your blood. Then, on donation day, your blood is drawn through an IV and a needle. The bone marrow is separated from your blood and collected. Then your blood is put back in your body.
“For me, the value of life is the ultimate thing,” Sáenz said. “You have someone out there who could die without your help. At least give them the chance for survival.”
The next donor drive for Sgt. Hatter is scheduled for October 8th at the new fire station in Cicero. A Facebook page has also been set up for people to stay updated and follow Hatter’s progress.
