BREA : Marrow Donor for Teen Found
A bone marrow donor has been found for a Brea teen-ager suffering from leukemia after more than 1,200 Orange County residents volunteered as potential donors.
Brandon Oba, 17, a senior at Brea-Olinda High School, has a chronic form of leukemia that doctors say is curable only with a bone-marrow transplant. Oba is scheduled to begin a months-long treatment and recovery process at UCLA Medical Center in January.
Karen Oba, Brandon’s mother, said Friday that she wanted to thank everyone who volunteered to donate marrow but wants minimal publicity about the upcoming procedure.
“We want a nice, quiet Christmas with our family,” she said.
After Oba was diagnosed with leukemia in early 1988, hundreds of friends and strangers gave blood to be tested as potential marrow donors. Only one person in 20,000 has marrow similar enough for a successful transplant.
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