TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — In early April, KGUN 9 shared the story of Arizona defensive back, Ayden Garnes, who saved someone’s life by donating bone marrow.
Garnes first got involved with the National Marrow Donor Program while at Duquesne University in 2022.
Now as a Wildcat, Garnes is continuing to raise awareness in Tucson.
“Getting more and more people in this smaller community is going to be a blessing," Garnes said. "There’s a lot of people that maybe don’t know anything about this but just a swab of the cheek can change everything.”
On Wednesday, Garnes and Arizona Football held a bone marrow donor drive to encourage more people to register to be donors.
“We’re actually seeing what their tissue type is and list that on the registry and if you’re ever a match, that’s when we contact you," NMDP Account Manager, Aubrie Vargas said.
The NMDP National Registry is meant to match donors to patients with blood cancer like leukemia or lymphoma.
“They can be asked to donate in one of two ways," Vargas said. "There’s a method under general anesthesia that happens less than 10% of the time but now, the majority of donations happen through the blood similar to plasma or platelet donation.”
Garnes was one of the 10% that underwent surgery.
“This is something that is meaningful pain, but long-lasting pain for a family that is suffering for what they are going through," Garnes said.
The goal of the drive was to get 250 swabs; the Wildcats got 345.
“How nice these people are to take their time out and potentially save a life, is one of the best things out of this day," Garnes said.
If you’re interested in registering, you can register here and get a swab kit mailed directly to you.
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Erin Patterson is a reporter for KGUN 9. She's agraduate of the University of Alabama with a Bachelor’s in News Media with a Sports Concentration. Erin recently obtained her Master's Degree in Sports Journalism from Arizona State University at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism, where she gained experience a sports reporter, anchor and producer. Share your story ideas and important issues with Erin by emailing erin.patterson@kgun9.com.
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