Update 10/25/2018: Finally, little Cataleya, found in her father a compatible bone donor and proceeded to transplant at the beginning of September. A few days ago, Cataleya received the medical discharge, and now she must continue with the periodic controls to verify that her recovery continues to be good.Cataleya is only 11 months old, but he has been fighting acute myeloid leukemia for five years. Your best option to survive is find a compatible bone marrow donor and undergo a transplant, but unfortunately, time plays against him.
Therefore, under the hashtag #SuperCataleya, his family has decided to start a social media campaign to raise awareness of his daughter's case and raise awareness of the importance of society become a bone marrow donor: by Cataleya, and by the 5,000 people who are diagnosed each year in our country.
Social networks turn to Cataleya
Cataleya lives in Valladolid and he has been half his short life fighting leukemia. According to the newspaper El Norte de Castilla, after five months admitted to the hospital receiving chemotherapy treatment, a compatible donor had been found for her. However, without further explanation, the donor was no longer available, and there will be no other available for her until next December.
Unfortunately, time is running against Cataleya and December is too far away for the fragile health of this little girl who you need an urgent transplant to continue living.
🌸 Cataleya is 11 months old and has been fighting leukemia for 5 years. He lives with his parents in Valladolid and his best option is to find a compatible bone marrow donor to undergo a transplant ... Just like Cataleya, hundreds of people in the world of all ages live the same situation: they need a bone marrow transplant and They do not have a compatible donor among their relatives. Did you know that only 1 in 4 people has a compatible HLA brother? ... If you are between 18 and 40 years old and in good health, find out about bone marrow donation. Not only for Cataleya, but for all the people in the world who need it ➡️➡️➡️ www.fcarreras.es/donamedula In the same link you can check the map of hospitals and centers in Spain where you can go to register as donor. We are #imparable against leukemia! Im #imparables #cancerinfantil #leukemia #donamedula #donasangre #linfoma #valladolid #fundacionjosepcarreras
A shared publication of the Josep Carreras Foundation (@imparablescontralaleukemia) on 5 Sep, 2018 at 12:25 PDT
That is why his father, Adrián García, has decided to share his daughter's story on social networks under the hashtag #SuperCataleya, with which he also intends to create social awareness about the importance of becoming a bone marrow donor, not only for his daughter but also for the rest of the people diagnosed who are waiting for a new opportunity.
Leukemia, the most frequent childhood cancer
According to the Josep Carreras Foundation, 5,000 new cases of leukemia are diagnosed each year in Spain. On the other hand, other malignant hemopathies such as lymphomas or multiple myeloma respectively affect 7,000 and 2,000 new patients each year in our country. As for the children, leukemia is the most frequent childhood cancer with an incidence of 30 percent of pediatric cancers.
The lymphoid leukemia It is the most frequent among children, while the AML It constitutes 20 percent of the leukemia diagnosed at this stage of life. The annual incidence in the pediatric age of the myeloid form is 8 cases per million children under 15 years old, especially before two years.
Despite all the advances and relentless research, still the causes that cause leukemia are unknown, although certain risk factors have been established that may favor the appearance of this disorder, such as large doses of high energy radiation, certain genetic characteristics such as Down Syndrome, or exposure to certain chemical agents. In addition, scientists have identified a virus that appears to increase the risk of contracting a very rare type of leukemia, although research is still under way.
Bone marrow donation
As reported by the Josep Carreras Foundation, within the family group, siblings are the best donors for a patient who needs a bone marrow transplant, because there is a greater degree of compatibility.
But nevertheless, only one in four patients has the possibility of finding a compatible family donor, so that the rest of the patients should resort to voluntary donors registered in international donor registries, or to umbilical cord blood donated by families when their baby is born.
The number of bone marrow donors increases year after year, and although it is certainly great news, unfortunately it continues to be insufficient, so we must be aware of the importance of the donation.If you want to donate marrow, you should contact your referral hospital and they will inform you of the procedure to follow. In general terms, the donation must start from a person between 18 and 40 years old, with a good state of health, a minimum weight of 50 kg and no history of heart, liver, autoimmune, infectious-contagious or neoplastic diseases.
In 70 percent of cases the donation procedure occurs through cytoaferesis or peripheral blood donation, and in very exceptional cases it takes place through surgery. Once the donation is made, the product obtained is administered to the patient as if it were a transfusion.
And if for some reason you could not donate, you can also help by becoming a member of the Josep Carreras Foundation, or by making a donation to contribute to scientific research.
Via El Norte de Castilla
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