‘I made a promise’: Houston-area man spreads awareness on rare disorder while he searches for donor

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A Houston man is on a mission to stay alive and shine the spotlight on a rare blood disorder.

At the age of 43 -- Pratik Vakil is battling a condition that normally impacts people over 60 -- and he is in need of a stem cell transplant. He also wants to encourage people to come forward to help the nearly 200,000 Americans who are dealing with myelodysplastic syndrome, or MDS.An oncologist diagnosed Vakil this past July.

MDS is referred to as “pre-leukemia” because if it is not treated properly it can develop into leukemia. The only cure is a blood stem cell transplant. Vakil, who is Indian, is most likely to find a match among South Asian donors -- but there are not enough in the national registry. Vakil is speaking up hoping to educate -- also taking part in blood drives and spreading the word on social media.

Vakil was diagnosed when his doctor detected a drop in his white blood cell and platelet counts. The 43-year-old husband and father of two not only wants to bring awareness to this rare blood disorder. He is also hoping to keep his word to his kids.

 

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