Bone marrow match needed for St Johnston mum-of-four battling leukaemia

A young St Johnston mother-of-four who is battling leukaemia needs a match for a bone marrow transplant.

Patrice McCrossan, née Rodgers, was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia in January.

The 33-year-old, a mother to four children who are aged between nine years and nine months old, was transferred to Galway University Hospital for treatment and tests.

She has now been referred to St James' Hospital in Dublin for a bone marrow transplant. However, she does not have a suitable sibling match and now needs to find a non-related match.

“Hopefully I will find my match soon,” Patrice said.

“If you do decide to register as a donor you might not be my match but you could be someone else’s lifesaver.”

You can join the bone marrow registry by clicking here.

Patrice said: “There you can register to be a donor for blood, platelets, bone marrow/stem cells which is what people like me depend on to survive.”

Patrice has been heartened by people who have said they will get tested for suitability and also been lifted by the volume of well-wishers.

She is now into her second cycle of treatment, which can last 28-42 days depending on recovery. In her first cycle, she received 10 units of blood and five units of platelets.

A GoFundMe, set up by her friend Kirsty Curran to aid her family during her treatment, has received almost €34,000.

Upon launching the fundraiser, Kirsty asked for: “A little donation just to help with kids and expenses of family travelling back and forth to be at her side and that they don't have the burden of worrying about money on top of everything they are going through.”