Atlanta City Council President Ceasar C. Mitchell and DoSomething.org are encouraging young people to Give a Spit About Cancer by attending a campaign kick-off event for the National Bone Marrow Registry. The event will take place on Thursday, from 6-8 p.m., at Central Park in Atlantic Station.
“I was pleased when Mrs. Lublin, CEO and Chief Old Person at DoSomething.org, asked my office to help kick-off the Atlanta Give a Spit about Cancer campaign,” said Mitchell “Her organization, DoSomething.org, has a long history of promoting advocacy among young adults. And I am honored to be a part of the drive to increase young adult participation in the bone marrow registry program.”
Lublin added that getting more people involved should be easy because of the ease o donating and some goodies offered at the event.
“Most people don’t realize how easy it is to sign up for the national bone marrow registry. All it takes is a cheek swab. That’s it,” said Lublin. “DoSomething.org is teaming up with my good friend, Council President Mitchell, to host an event to get as many young people in Atlanta signed up for the registry. Who doesn’t love free food and the chance to save a life?”
The Give a Spit campaign seeks to help save the lives of patients affected with blood cancers by increasing the number of young adults on the national bone marrow registry. Bone marrow donations are most successful when the donors fall between the ages of 18-24.
More specifically, the campaign targets young adult minorities, as minorities make up only 25 percent of the registry. The low number of minority registrants makes it more difficult for minority patients to find a lifesaving match.
Another important note the campaign highlights is that only 30 percent of patients who need a bone marrow transplant can find a match within their family. The other 70 percent rely on complete strangers.
The need for increasing the number of potential donors on the registry is personal for Mitchell.
“This issue hits close to home for me, as my cousin, Ashante Sloan, is a bone marrow recipient,” said Mitchell. “Not long ago Ashante was diagnosed with aplastic anemia and survived her diagnosis thanks to a bone marrow transplant and the Be the Match organization. Her donor was a complete, yet noble, stranger at the time.”
The Give a Spit campaign kicks-off on Thursday, Sept. 19 and continues through Dec.19. Young adults are encouraged to continue raising awareness by hosting additional parties through the Dec. 19 campaign end date.
For more information on Give a Spit, visit: https://www.dosomething.org/spit
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