By Lynnea Olivarez, The Monitor, McAllen, Texas
Jul. 19–MCALLEN — More than 35,000 non-Hodgkin lymphoma patients search for a bone marrow transplant every year.
“Right now, only about two in five patients are finding matches,” said Yvonne Ybarra, a director at the National Marrow Donor Program.
Tim Shepard, 19, of Mission, beat the odds.
At United Blood Services in McAllen on Friday, Shepard met the man who saved his life, Terence Johns, a Boston police officer.
“Thanks to Terence, … I’m here today with you all,” Shepard said.
Shepard was initially diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2003, when he received chemotherapy for a year. He went into remission until shortly after his high school graduation in the summer of 2006. Then his doctors told him that his cancer had come back.
“Terence was Tim’s only match,” said Roland Guerra, Shepard’s uncle and legal guardian. “Without him, he would not be alive.”
In 2008 alone, 66,120 patients have been diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, and 19,160 patients have died as a result of this cancer, estimates the National Cancer Institute.
Shepard’s chances of being added to the latter statistic were significantly increased because of his Hispanic and African-American ancestry. (I know correct AP style is “black,” but this is the way that Tim has been described…) Less than 25 percent of the 6 million registered marrow and stem cell donors are of minority racial or ethnic backgrounds, according to the donor program.
Johns, however, said that he “jumped at the chance” to become a donor.
“I dropped what I was doing and was there in the next 30 minutes,” Johns said about his reaction to a message left on his home answering machine informing him that he was a potential match to Shepard.
“When they finally told me I was a match,” Johns said, “it was like one of those television commercials and then they told me the side effects (of donating).”
Guerra said that so many registrants fail to follow through in donating their bone marrow in fear of the physical pain associated with the procedure.
For Johns, the procedure “was the easiest thing I’ve ever done.” He said that he even threw away five out of the six doses of pain medication doctors prescribed.
To help raise awareness of and money for non-Hodgkin lymphoma research and the donor program, nearly 50 bicyclists from the area gathered at Friday’s celebration to participate in a “Hero Ride,” in which participants biked the 250 miles from McAllen to San Antonio.
“As long as we continue fighting, we’re always going to come out on top,” said Letty Zavala, president of Team McAllen Cycling.
For now, Shepard’s own battle has ceased.
He has been in remission for more than a year, and has just completed his first year as a student at South Texas College. Shepard plans to become a pediatric oncologist.
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