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LEE
MARCH GRAYSON
Founder & President Marrow Power
When
I received the dire diagnosis of leukemia in August of 1995, I realized that not
only was I mortal, but my mortality was suddenly quite finite. At 34 years of
age, you don’t normally think of your future in terms of just two or three years.
That was only if the medicines could control the prolific overproduction of useless
white blood cells in my bone marrow. I needed a bone marrow transplant, and I
needed it soon. Time:
The days and months until a marrow donor was found for me dragged on—an agony
of waiting. But time took on another dimension as well. Each day became a gift,
a blessing, a treasure to be cherished without reservation. I
think of a bone marrow transplant not as a miracle of modern medicine but as a
miracle from God. The transplant itself is like a blood transfusion. Except that
in this case, the IV bag contains fluid bone marrow from a donor whose marrow
is genetically similar (preferably identical) to the patient’s own marrow. There
is no operation. The transfusion occurs right at your bedside. To
prepare for the transplant, you undergo a process called conditioning. This
is the most difficult part. To accept the new marrow, the doctors must virtually
destroy your own marrow, meaning they obliterate your ability to fight infection.
For me, that amounted to two days of intensive, continuous chemotherapy, followed
by four days of lethal radiation, three times a day. Often, I recall the Book
of Genesis, in which God created the world in six days and rested on the seventh
day. My bone marrow was destroyed in six days and on the seventh day, my life
was given back to me. All
the medicine in the world won’t save you if you don’t have a genetically compatible,
living marrow donor, and this is where the miracle lies. Being a marrow donor
is easy and relatively painless. but it requires an act of moral courage. Donors
save lives. A donor saved mine. Her name is Cheryl Wrigley, and I’ll always be
grateful to her. Strange
as this may sound, I found that cancer can be inspirational. Cancer is not an
end, but a beginning. A new way to look at life. The rat race is no longer important.
Family and friends are the only things that matter. Time becomes a precious commodity,
not to be wasted. Time for reflection and self-improvement. And to help others
in need. Whenever someone newly diagnosed with leukemia wants to talk to me, I
always make the time.
About
Lee March Grayson, Marrow Power’s Founder and President: Lee
March Grayson, is a survivor of leukemia who underwent a bone marrow transplant
in 1996. Grayson and his family encountered the full range of challenges a serious
illness throws ones way and successfully negotiated a myriad of difficulties
with doctors, hospitals, insurance companies, employers and others during Lees
prolonged illness and recovery. An attorney and criminal justice professor, Lee
brings empathy, understanding, sensitivity, passion and compassion to this cause.

Marrow Power 105 Shady Lane Randolph,
NJ 07869
973-895-3356
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