Boy, 3, in Need of Bone Marrow Donor
Kaiser Permanente will hold a bone marrow drive Thursday and Friday to help find a match for a child in need of a transplant.
Three-year-old Kyle Rodas of Sylmar was diagnosed with acute leukemia shortly after his first birthday, hospital officials said. Doctors assessed his chance of survival at just 5% without a bone marrow transplant.
While the bone marrow drive is open to all potential donors, hospital officials said they are specifically seeking Latino donors because they are most likely to provide a match with Kyle, who is Latino.
Minority marrow donors make up just 7% of the potential donors listed on the National Marrow Donor Transplant Registry, hospital officials said. Minority donors are needed because bone marrow must be matched according to specific tissue traits.
The drive runs from noon to 6 p.m. Thursday and from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. Friday at Kaiser Permanente Woodland Hills, 5601 De Soto Ave. For information, call (818) 719-4329.
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