My People. My Family. Mi Sangre.

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Shortly after he was born, Bruno Lara got a fever that was hard to control.

After two months in the hospital, Bruno was diagnosed with Hemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis, a rare and life-threatening immunodeficiency.

His hope for a cure lies in finding a blood stem cell donor.

To help Bruno and other Latino patients urgently searching for a genetic match, Be The Match, a nonprofit that aims to save lives through marrow and cord blood transplantation, launched a new campaign, “My People. My Family. Mi Sangre.”

“The cure for blood cancer is a blood stem cell transplant from a genetically matched donor – a “DNA twin.” Latino patients have only a 46% chance of finding one,” according to the Be The Match website. Finding a donor for Latino patients is hard because of complex genetics and a small donor pool.

“Patients like Bruno need their Latino hermanos y hermanas to join the Be The Match Registry. They need to find their DNA twin—and their cure.”

About the Campaign

“My People. My Family. Mi Sangre.” aims to encourage more Latinos to join the registry—for Bruno and the thousands of other patients in need of matching donors.

The campaign will share patient and donor stories. Partner organizations will highlight the urgency of getting involved.

“Hispanic communities demonstrate incredible dedication to family, hard work and service, helping shape our national character,” said Amy Alegi of Be The Match. “With such a strong commitment to supporting one another, we hope that young, healthy Hispanic people will consider signing up as potential blood stem cell donors. It’s a unique opportunity to be a cure for a patient in need. Someone you may not know, but who could easily be a member of your family, a friend, a neighbor or a coworker.”

Bruno’s Hope

Currently, Bruno is two weeks into his eight-week cycle of chemotherapy.

Doctors hope to give him a bone marrow transplant at the end of this cycle. But he currently has no matches on the registry.

Without a match, Bruno faces more chemo. he also faces uncertainty about the future as his search for a donor continues.

Bruno’s family hope to find their son a life-saving genetic match. They also want to encourage other Latinos to join the registry to help the entire community.

“Our genetic ancestry helps make us who we are. Patients seeking a blood stem cell donor often find their match in someone who shares their ancestry and heritage. It’s a very special connection,” said Malena Laughlin of the Icla da Silva Foundation.

“The more donors who sign up, the more Hispanic lives we have a chance to save.”

Step up to save a life today!

Join the Registry!

Editor’s Note: As of November 2018, Bruno Lara is in recovery after a bone marrow transplant!