Today we’re launching a new campaign to encourage men to sign up to the register. To mark the launch, the One Show presenter and Anthony Nolan supporter Joe Crowley wrote to regional papers around the country to ask them to support the campaign:
LETTER TO EDITORS
Dear Sir/Madam
Men and women are equal in the 21st century – aren’t we? Not when it comes to treating blood cancer.
For a patient with blood cancer, such as leukaemia, a bone marrow transplant is often their last chance of survival – but they need a matching bone marrow donor to give them that chance.
New research carried out by blood cancer charity Anthony Nolan shows that young men are the most likely to be chosen to donate, because they provide patients with the best possible outcomes. But, incredibly, young men make up just 12% of the Anthony Nolan register.
I joined the Anthony Nolan register in 2011 because I wanted to help save the life of someone with blood cancer. I’m now calling on every young man aged 16–30 to make a real difference this summer and sign up too.
Potential donors can join online at www.anthonynolan.org by filling in a short form and providing a small saliva sample. So the only question is: are you man enough to join me?
Joe Crowley
The One Show presenter
www.anthonynolan.org