Marlboro Mom Searches for Stem Cell Donor

Community members will come together to save a life through a stem cell donor drive on Oct. 7.

Marlboro mother Shira Klein was diagnosed with Hodgkin's Lymphona on New Year's Eve 2010 and has been fighting for her life ever since. After a relapse following her first stem cell transplant using her own stem cells, she will need to undergo a second stem cell transplant, this time with cells from a donor.

Smiles4Shira was created by friends who want to help Klein find the donation she needs. The donor drive is scheduled for Oct. 7 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Dance Attitudes in Marlboro.

Anyone can become registered as a donor by attending the drive and providing a cheek swab sample or by mailing away for a kit to be sent directly to their home.

If found to be a match, the most common donation is a Peripheral Blood Stem Cell (PBSC) Donation, in which cells are collected via the bloodstream. The donor's blood is removed from one arm and passed through a machine that separates out the blood stem cells. The remaining blood is returned to the donor through the other arm.

Learn more about Smiles4Shira on Facebook.

To mail away for a kit to be sent to your home, please contact DKMS Americas.

Learn more about Bone Marrow Donation.