More people in Macao need to register as stem cell donors if the scourge of blood cancer is to be tackled, says Peter McCleave, a UK campaigner of Macanese origins. He is in Macao to spread awareness of stem cell treatments, trace his family history and possibly find a genetically compatible donor from the local Macanese community who could help him keep his own myeloma in remission.
“Cancer is everywhere,” McCleave told public broadcaster TDM in an interview yesterday. “It doesn’t care about your heritage, your skin colour, your religion or your bank balance.” By signing up as potential stem cell donors, he said, “we can come together to help each other, whatever our differences.”
Stem cell therapy is mostly used to treat cancers affecting the blood, such as myeloma, leukemia, and lymphoma. Finding a donor of matching ethnicity greatly improves the chances of compatibility, which can make the process especially fraught for people of mixed race.
[See more: Peter McCleave brings his fight against cancer to Macao]
McCleave’s paternal grandmother, Lucille da Costa, was Macanese, having been born to a Chinese mother and a Portuguese father. That means there is a strong likelihood that a compatible donor for McCleave will come from the Macanese community.
A donation, McCleave says, “won’t cure my cancer, but it will keep me in a state of remission for longer until such time as medical advancement comes to find a potential cure.”
McCleave, who runs the UK-based 10,000 Donors campaign, has timed his visit to Macao with Encontro 2024. The triennial reunion of the Macanese diaspora is being attended by some 1,400 guests this year. In a Facebook post last weekend, McCleave revealed that he would be addressing the gathering on Friday and that his message had to be “on point,” because “the consequences of not getting it right are far, far too great.”
To register as a potential donor visit 10,000 Donors campaign’s website. If your location is not shown in the website, click here for a list of global registries. Alternatively, write to Peter McCleave via [email protected] for more information.
