A day before Valentine’s day, Hillary Husband will celebrate her wedding anniversary. It’s a moment that wouldn’t be possible, without a selfless act from a stranger.
“After battling leukemia for seven years, my only chance for survival was a bone marrow transplant. But I didn’t have a family member as a match,” Hillary Husband said. “That’s when a man I’d never met before stepped up to be my donor. He saved my life.”
Seven years later, Husband got to meet her anonymous donor on her wedding day, sharing a dance and a sweet coincidence.
“I couldn’t believe it, but we have the same wedding day. He was also married on February 13th,” she said. “It felt meant to be.”
Working with Congress to Save More Lives
Husband is beyond grateful for her donor and she’s working with Congress so that more people will also have hope to find a match like she did. Unfortunately, about half of donors say “no” to donating when called upon. A primary reason is they fear losing their jobs, if they take off work to donate, according to NMDP, which leads the national registry of donors.
“I can’t imagine if my donor had to say ‘no’ because he couldn’t get off work. This would have ended my life,” Husband said.
That’s why Husband is asking Congress to pass the Lifesaving Leave Act. Following her advocacy, U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy of Louisiana stepped up this month to help sponsor the bipartisan bill. It allows donors to take up to 40 hours of non-consecutive, unpaid leave from work—so they can save someone’s life. The protections are similar job protections that kidney and other organ donors have, but marrow and blood cell donors haven’t been included yet.
“I would like to extend my deepest appreciation and thanks to Senator Cassidy for taking a stand to make it easier for more people to say ‘yes’ to saving lives,” Husband said. “Now, we need our members of Congress to work swiftly together to pass this bill into law.”
A Perfect Time to Act: Husband to Join Fly-In to Congress
The Lifesaving Leave Act comes following a cancer research breakthrough made by NMDP this year. Now, a fully-matched donor is no longer needed, and doctors can use partially-matched donors for successful marrow and blood cell transplants. This is especially significant for people who are ethnically diverse, increasing their odds of getting a match from what had been as low as 29 percent to now greater than 84 percent.
Research shows the best transplant outcomes are with younger donors, aged 18 to 30. That’s why Husband is traveling to Capitol Hill later this month to join a fly-in to Congress, with dozens of volunteer advocates from across the nation, to ask for an additional $2 million in funding to help recruit younger donors.
“We know that we need more young and healthy donors, but many of them are just starting out in their first jobs, making it difficult to take time off work without risks. That’s why we need to pass the Lifesaving Leave Act to protect them, so they can save the lives of others,” Husband said.
About NMDP
At NMDP, we believe each of us holds the key to curing blood cancers and disorders. As a global nonprofit leader in cell therapy, NMDP creates essential connections between researchers and supporters to inspire action and accelerate innovation to find life-saving cures. With the help of blood stem cell donors from the world’s most diverse registry and our extensive network of transplant partners, physicians and caregivers, we’re expanding access to treatment so that every patient can receive their life-saving cell therapy. NMDP. Find cures. Save lives.
