Manlius Police Sergeant Continues Search For Bone Marrow Donor Police Sergeant Needs Bone Marrow Transplant

JUST ONE CALL- THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT SEARGENT KEN HATTER OF THE MANLIUS POLICE DEPARMENT IS WAITING FOR. A CALL FROM HIS DOCTOR SAY HE HAS FOUND HIM A BONE MARROW DONOR.KEN HAS BEEN BATTLING NON-HODGKINS LYMPHOMA FOR OVER A DECADE. AND NOW HIS LAST CHANCE IS A BONE MARROW DONATION. EVEN WITH MILLIONS ON THE REGISTRY LIST- DOCTORS HAVE YET TO FIND A MATCH.BUT THE TOWN OF MANLIUS IS NOT GIVING UP- VOLUNTEERS HAVE ORGANIZED SEVERAL DONOR DRIVES – TONIGHT BEING THE 4TH – THEY KNOW IT ONLY TAKES 1 PERSON TO SAVE KEN’S LIFE.
“The support is just overwhelming. I mean every law enforcement agency, people that I’ve never met before, different counties, complete strangers, family, friends…i mean they stepped right up and they’re doing just everything in their power.”
IT’S AS SIMPLE AS A MOUTH SWAB AND IT ONLY TAKES ABOUT 5 MINUTES AND YOU NEVER KNOW YOU COULD BE SOMEONES MATCH.
TO DONATE YOU MUST BE BETWEEN THE AGES OF 18 AND FIFTY- FIVE AND FREE FROM DISEASE AND INJURIES.
“There’s been people on the registry for 20 years and they’ve never gotten a phone call”
BUT FOR SOMEONE WHO HAS GOTTEN THE CALL – HE SAYS THE EXPERIENCE IS AMAZING. HUNTER SAEZ – A LOCAL NEWS REPORTER IN WISCONSIN RECEIVED HIS CALL EARLIER THIS MONTH AND FEELS LIKE HE WON THE LOTTERY.
“You think oh how could you be one person to help and then you
are that person. Overall the experience was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had if not the best.”
ONLY 1 OUT OF EVERY FOUR-HUNDRED AND THIRTY PEOPLE ON THE LIST GET ASKED TO DONATE. AND HUNTER SAYS HE’LL DO IT AGAIN IF HE HAS TO.
“For me, the value of life is the ultimate thing. You have somebody out there who could die without your help. At least give them the chance of survival.”
THE NEXT DONOR DRIVE FOR KEN IS SCHEDULED FOR OCTOBER 8TH IN CICERO AT THE NEW FIRE STATION. REPORTING FROM SYRACUSE’S INNER HARBOR, I’M REBEKAH CASTOR. NCC NEWS.

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.

Sgt. Ken Hatter's police department headshot
Sgt. Ken Hatter is looking for a bone marrow donor.
© Courtesy of Manlius Police Dpt

“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.

Hunter Sáenz sitting in hospital bed with an IV and needle in his arm donating his bone marrow
Hunter Sáenz got the call earlier this month that he was a match for a patient also battling non-hodgkins lymphoma.
© 2019 Courtesy of Hunter Sáenz

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.

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