ELIZABETH
Leukemia. Leukemia. Leukemia.
The word echoed again and again in my head.
I stared at the doctor like he was speaking a language I didn’t understand. Maybe he was. Maybe I didn’t want to understand. His mouth kept moving, saying things I didn’t hear until three words broke through the fog.
Did I hear right?
A bone marrow match?
He was explaining something about Human Leukocyte Antigens and the need to match genetic markers in my blood to find a compatible donor.
“Ma’am,” he called out to me, and the look he gave was the kind people give when they’re about to ask for something impossible. “For your treatment, we’ll need to look for a bone marrow match, and the best chance of finding one is from a blood relative. The match must share the same Human Leukocyte Antigen profile
