DURBANITES are invited to the famous Florida Road in Morningside today to help save the life of a little girl who is terminally ill.
Six-year-old Zamaswazi Dlamini, from KwaMashu B-section, was diagnosed with Fanconi anaemia (FA), which affects the bone marrow, and she now needs a stem cell transplant to survive.
As a result, DKMS-Africa, an international non-profit organisation which is dedicated to the fight against blood cancer and blood disorders, organised a donor drive to help Zamaswazi find a match.
The organisation’s regional donor recruitment manager Nockey Mkhize said a gazebo would be set up in front of the Starbucks coffee shop on Florida Road today where people could register as donors.
“We want people to register to be donors so that we can find a match for Zamaswazi. If they are a match the process is as simple as donating blood,” said Mkhize.
She said Zamaswazi, who was a budding fashionista, had to endure lengthy stays in the Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital when all she wanted to do was go to school, like the other children she knew.
Mkhize said those interested in being donors had to be between 18 and 55, in good health and willing to help anyone.
“She can only find a match in her same race group, but we want as many people as possible to come and be on the register,” said Mkhize.
She said more donors of colour were needed on the registry because there was a worldwide shortage.
At the event, Durban Youth Radio’s DJ Philani Zuma, the host of Parent Meetings with the Big Five Daddy, will be spreading awareness about blood cancers and disorders as well as recruiting donors to join the donor registry and save lives.
“Eligible donors will receive a cheek swab which will be analysed, and added to the registry and be made available for all patients searching for a donor, such as Zamaswazi,” said Mkhize.
She said the Reach for a Dream organisation had also promised to make Zamaswazi’s dreams come true, as it has for more than 30 years for children who are diagnosed with life-threatening diseases.
Fanconi anaemia is a rare genetic disease which results in the decreased production of all types of blood cells.
DKMS-Africa said every 72 minutes someone was diagnosed with blood cancer in South Africa, but only 0.04% of South Africans were registered as donors, making the chances of finding a match extremely low.
The Independent on Saturday