superamit:

Two weeks ago I got a call from my doctor, who I’d gone to see the day before because I’d been feeling worn out and was losing weight, and wasn’t sure why.

He was brief: “Amit, you’ve got Acute Leukemia. You need to enter treatment right away.”

I was terrified. I packed a backpack full of clothes, went to the hospital as he’d instructed, and had transfusions through the night to allow me to take a flight home at 7am the next day. I Googled acute leukemia as I lay in my hospital bed, learning that If it hadn’t been caught, it would have died within weeks.

—

I have a couple more months of chemo to go, then the next step is a bone marrow transplant. As Jay and Tony describe below, minorities are severely underrepresented in the bone marrow pool, and I need help.

A few ways to help:

1. If you’re South Asian, get a free test by mail. You rub your cheeks with a cotton swab and mail it back. It’s easy.
2. If you’re in NYC, you can go to this event my friends are putting on.
3. If you know any South Asians, please point ‘em to the links above. Thank you.

:( :( :( 

I’ve been in the bone marrow registry since I was 18 but I don’t think I can do it anymore because I’ve had sex with men and they don’t let you give blood but maybe I still can?

They haven’t called me in a while. I think I’m still registered? I guess I should call.

God I am so terrified of getting young guy cancer. I’ve had an undiagnosed inflamed lymph node (though an ENT told me it’s probably nothing) for a few years and I probably don’t have cancer but man the idea of cancer makes me so sad.

(Source: jayparkinsonmd, via interweber)