A weeklong, statewide bone marrow drive to help a California Highway Patrol officer with cancer was scheduled to begin Saturday, including at four San Diego County locations.
The goal is to register potential donors for Officer Keith Meter of the CHP’s Santa Ana office in Orange County. His bone marrow cancer was detected in 2014 after he was identified as a potential donor for a young girl in an effort to save her life. Meter was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndrome.
The “Stand Up for Keith Team Meter Marrow Drive” will be held at 40 locations statewide through March 19. The 18-year CHP veteran was being treated by City of Hope in Duarte, which was seeking a marrow match for him.
The CHP has been working with several donor registry partners including the City of Hope cancer research hospital; Be the Match, called the world’s largest and most diverse marrow registry; Officers Give Hope, a public safety effort to host marrow drives; and BloodSource, a blood center in Northern and Central California.
The CHP was seeking participation from its employees, other state agencies, and the public to support Officer Meter and thousands of others by joining the marrow registry.
Potential donors should be ages 18 to 44, must meet health eligibility guidelines and must make a good faith commitment to donate to anyone in need if they are a match.
During the drive, volunteers will provide participants with registry information and then take a cheek swab to determine if they are a match for Officer Meter or any other person registered.
“We would not wish this illness on anybody,” CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow said, “But the enthusiasm and involvement of so many in this drive may lead to a lifesaving match for Officer Meter as well as for others who need treatment.”
The dates and locations in San Diego County include, March 15, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the CHP Border Division Office, 9330 Farnham St. in Kearny Mesa; March 16, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Grossmont Community College in El Cajon; March 17, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the CHP Office at 435 Tortuga Dr., Vista; and March 18, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Balboa Park, 1825 Park Blvd.
Additional marrow registry information can be found online at bethematch.org and officersgivehope.org.
— City News Service
