Sarah Hilaman’s decision to register with the National Marrow Donor Program led to a lifesaving match with a 10-year-old patient.
Through her work as a phlebotomist at Children’s Health Plano, Sarah Hilaman is part of a world-class pediatric medical team serving kids across North Texas. In recent months, however, her registration with the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) led to an even stronger connection with a patient. It all started with a personal experience.
“I watched family members go through cancer treatment,” Hilaman says. “Seeing the difficulties of treatment, and then coming to realize there was something I could do to help, is what motivated me to register.”
Marrow donations are utilized in the treatment of 75 different blood cancers and life-threatening diseases. Established in 1986, the NMDP currently lists over 42 million potential donors around the world, all searchable by patients in need. Signing up took just a few minutes, and Hilaman subsequently matched with 10-year-old Santiago at Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston. Her donation was the key to helping him win his fight against T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia.
Photo courtesy of NMDP
Hilaman and Santiago met for the first time on stage at NMDP’s One Forum conference late last year. In honor of February’s National Donor Day, Hilaman is sharing her story in hopes of inspiring others to register as potential donors.
“Seeing this healthy, smiling little boy who is getting to live his life because of a little piece of me, it’s hard to describe how meaningful that is,” says Hilaman. “We will be part of each other’s lives forever.”
Registration takes ten minutes or less; for those unable to donate, additional opportunities are available to support the NMDP. For more information, visit my.nmdp.org.