Bone Marrow Donors Sought for 2 Vietnamese Children

A nonprofit organization will seek bone marrow donors this weekend for two Vietnamese children who are suffering from a rare and sometimes fatal blood disease, a spokeswoman said.

Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches, a Los Angeles group specializing in finding donors for people with blood marrow diseases, will attempt to find matches for Andrew Nguyen, 2, of Riverside and John Adam Le, 4, of Westminster from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday and from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday at St. Barbara’s Catholic Church, 730 S. Euclid St., Santa Ana.

Because a match is more likely among people of the same ethnic background, the group is asking Asians between the ages of 18 and 55 for help.

“Finding the right person means my son might have a chance of living a normal life,” said Amy Nguyen, mother of Andrew.

Andrew was diagnosed with aplastic anemia eight months ago after she noticed that he bruised easily and was very pale, Nguyen said. John’s parents could not be reached for comment.

The disease affects six people per million annually, said Dr. Clarke Anderson, who treats patients with aplastic anemia at Childrens Hospital in Los Angeles.

The disease weakens the bone marrow to the point it can no longer produce adequate numbers of red and white blood cells and platelets, which help plug up openings in blood vessels during injuries, Anderson said.

“Without the platelets, you keep on bleeding,” Anderson said.

Finding a bone marrow donor is difficult, Anderson said. The chances of finding a match is almost the same as winning the Lotto, he said. But it does happen, and organizers say they have succeeded in several cases within the past few years.

For the parents of children suffering from the disease, Nguyen said, life can be a constant balancing act.

Nguyen quit working after Andrew was diagnosed with the disease because the child needed to be watched all the time, she said. For protection from injuries, Nguyen said Andrew wears a bicycling helmet during waking hours. Running and jumping are considered risky.

“I’m always scared that he’ll fall. That could cause internal bleeding, which in his case might be fatal,” Nguyen said. “He can’t be out of my sight.”