STAGE TUBE: LION KING Cub Tavarez Battles Leukemia

At just eleven-years-old Shannon Tavarez already had a promising Broadway career. She was performing four shows a week as young Nala in The Lion King. Everyday Shannon juggled a full day of school before rushing to the theater for an evening show at the Minskoff Theatre on Broadway-- She was living her dream. Now, just two months later, Shannon's dream is simply to
grow up. In April Shannon was diagnosed with Acute Leukemia. The talented young star was performing when the symptoms first hit. Her lower back and legs suddenly started hurting making it hard for her to perform or even walk. "When I found out, it hit me really hard, like someone was throwing a ball at me. It was shocking and I thought, why me?" said Shannon. Now she lives at Schneider Children's Hospital in Long Island where she receives daily chemotherapy treatments. A bone marrow transplant from a stranger may be her only chance at survival.

Shannon's mother is African American and her father is Dominican. Only eight percent of the seven million registered donors are African American which means that only seventeen percent of African Americans in need of a transplant will receive one.

Every day thousands of patients search the national registry in hope for a bone marrow donor match. Sadly 6 out of 10 patients never receive a transplant. "We have to fight harder. I feel like it's my obligation to do whatever I can do recruit more donors," states Katharina Harf, Co-founder,
DKMS Americas, "I lost my mother to leukemia, but others can live if we only had enough donors. Register with DKMS today so Shannon doesn't have to keep her dream waiting."

Registering to become a bone marrow donor starts with a cheek swab; it is a commitment to help save a life. You must be between 18 and 55 and in good general health. When you register with DKMS, you will also be listed on the Be The Match Registry® (operated by the NMDP) and can be found as a donor match for any patient in need of a bone marrow transplant.

The cost to DKMS for registering a new potential bone marrow donor is $65. DKMS does not make paying the fee mandatory, but we depend on public donations and appreciate any contribution. We are grateful for every dollar.

The DKMS mission is to save lives by recruiting bone marrow donors for leukemia patients. More than 20,000 DKMS donors have helped save lives by donating their bone marrow. DKMS is the largest bone marrow donor center in the world with over 2 million registered donors. DKMS Americas is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization. For more information about DKMS and to learn more about registering as a bone marrow donor, visit www.getswabbed.org.