 24 year old Niki Duarte, from Centurion, Pretoria, was diagnosed on the 13th August 2009 with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia. He matriculated from Sutherland High School and since then studied at the Thswane University of Technology for a B-Tech Degree in Electrical Engineering. He currently has his National Diploma, but still requires 18 months of practical training to receive his degree. He was scheduled to start his training on the 11th August 2009, but instead he went to see the doctor because he had the flu and was worried he had contracted Swine flu. The diagnosis was far worse than swine flu when he heard he had leukaemia and he has not been able to continue his studies since then. He has undergone extensive Chemotherapy until January 2010, when he finally went into remission. He is still undergoing chemotherapy as an out patient, but now finds himself in a situation where he urgently requires a bone marrow stem cell transplant.
Niki's hobbies and interests include a variety of sports such as soccer and cycling. He has played soccer for his Youth Prayer Group Soccer team called PIE (People Into Enagelisation) in the One Way Christian Soccer League in Pretoria, and is an active member in the Youth Prayer Group. This youth group is currently working together with the Sunflower Fund in creating awareness around the need for donors to join the South African Bone Marrow Registry, not just for Niki but as a possible match for any young sufferer.
As a cyclist Niki has for the last 9 years competed in the Argus & the 94.7 Cycle races to name a few. He decided in consultation with his doctor that he would compete in his 10th Consecutive Argus race in 2010. Read more on his Argus cycle under the News section. |
|
Bafedile appeals for a life saving donor |
In September 2008,  (48), a teacher at Chipatabane High School in Bronkhorstspruit, was diagnosed with leukaemia. She underwent an autologous transplant and started to feel better immediately as life went back to normal for Bafedile and her family, at least for a few months.
In September 2009, Bafedile’s life changed forever. She received news from her doctor that she had relapsed. Her only option now, is to have a bone marrow transplant, this time hopefully with an unrelated matched donor as she has no siblings to be tested first.
Bafedile’s family, friends and neighbours have been extremely supportive over the past two years as well as helping with finding her a donor by distributing The Sunflower Fund brochures in the community in desperate effort to try recruit more bone marrow stem cell donors onto the South African Bone Marrow Registry (SABMR).
Bafedile has searched the SABMR for a bone marrow stem cell donor already and has been unsuccessful with finding a match so far.
What this means, is that her life rests on new bone marrow stem cell donors being recruited onto the SABMR. Ethnic origin/heritage is very important when matching donors and patients. The ‘markers’ that are tested, when searching for a match, are genetically inherited and often unique to a particular race. There are currently only 17 % of bone marrow donors, on the SABMR, from African, Indian and mixed ethnic background. The shortage of these groups can and will have a severe impact on patients trying to find a matching unrelated donor.
If many more healthy people, between the ages of 18 and 50, from these ethnic groups joined the registry and became a bone marrow stem cell donor, then we could increase Bafedile’s and other patient’s chances of finding a matching donor that could ultimately save their lives.
This is an urgent call to the people of South Africa to call The Sunflower Fund toll free number 0800 12 10 82, weekdays between 9 and 4pm and register to become a bone marrow donor. Bafedile and many more patients are relying on you.
All that is required from you to join the South African Bone Marrow Registry is two test tubes of blood. Two test tubes of blood that could save someone’s life.
The cost of tissue typing all new registered bone marrow stem cell donors is R1000 per person, which is why we organise fundraising events to raise the necessary funds to pay for these tests so that The Sunflower Fund can sponsor the tests for those who can’t afford to pay for them.
Three Round Tabler’s decided to run 350 Miles4Marrow in just eight days trying from Nelspruit to Melrose Arch in JHB in order to assist The Sunflower fund in raising funds to pay for the tissue typing costs and to create the awareness needed about the urgent need for bone marrow stem cell donors and more specifically, more donors from various ethnic groups. Tarryn Corlett, National Fundraiser and PR Coordinator, was one of the crew members for the eight days for 350Miles4Marrow run. During the second last day, they went to visit Bafedile to hear her story and help her by promising to generate as much awareness as possible.
If you would like to see what the runners have been getting up to for the past 8 days, visit the blog: www.350miles4marrow.blogspot.com.
Come on South Africa; share a little, to save a life! |
 Dr Bukhosi Mtukushe had recently graduated with a medical degree from the University of Cape Town (UCT) when he was diagnosed with lymphoma, an insidious cancer that attacks blood platelets and lymph nodes.
Naturally he was devastated at the news; no-one at the age of 28years wants to hear that he has a life-threatening disease.
After the initial shock at the news, Bukhosi began the process of trying to get his body back into health by admitting at the UCT private hospital for a course of chemotherapy in December 2006, a month after the diagnosis.
Although his attending physician was optimistic about the initial course - which lasted five months - further tests revealed that a second regiment of chemotherapy was necessary. And thus Bukhosi was forced to steel himself for another round of chemotherapy from July 2007 to October of that same year.
|
|
Read more... [Bukhosi needs your help!]
|
|
 If you are lucky enough to meet Letlhonololo “Tlhogi” Maseko you will think he is like many other 15-year old boys at St Alban’s College in Pretoria. Full of hope and promise, good-looking with a bright and ready smile, obviously intelligent and very eloquent. He loves reading, watching television, music, especially rap, which he writes himself. So talented and passionate about his rap-writing, that he was about to record his first song in a studio during the school holidays. Tlhogi also loves school, but only when he is healthy enough to attend school. He completed the first term of Grade 8 in 2006, and is trying again this year to complete the grade, a milestone in a young life where every day is an important milestone.
Tlhogi has leukaemia. He needs a bone marrow stem cell transplant.
|
|
Read more... [Tlhogi Maseko]
|
|
|
People 
