Hongkongers urged to become bone marrow donors and save lives in city where finding a match is tough – especially for Eurasians
When usual treatments for blood diseases fail, a bone-marrow transplant may be a person’s only hope. But the city’s growing number of Eurasians are under-represented on the city’s donor register – as one man is now finding
Can you spare less than an hour to put yourself on a list of potential lifesavers, wherever you are in the world? By doing so you could become a hero by registering as a bone marrow donor.
Senior assistant director of public prosecutions Gavin Shiu urgently needs a bone-marrow transplant, his last weapon in his fight against acute lymphoblastic leukaemia – a cancer of the blood and bone marrow. Registering is easy, and even if you are not a match for Shiu, who is of Irish-Chinese descent, you may be able to help one of the thousands of others in Hong Kong – and around the world – who are waiting for a life-saving match.
Every year, more than a thousand adults and children in Hong Kong are diagnosed with leukaemia and other life-threatening blood diseases. When usual treatments fail, a bone-marrow transplant may be their only hope. But Hong Kong’s growing population of Eurasians, a neglected minority, are under-represented on the local register.
Shiu, father of teenaged girls Felicity and Natalie, has worked in the justice department for 24 years. One of the city’s most experienced prosecutors, he has represented the department in major Basic Law constitutional appeals in the Court of Final Appeal.
The former ESF Glenealy School and King George V School pupil has been married to schoolteacher Jennifer Lau for 20 years. He has played lawn bowls for the Hong Kong Football Club and, as secretary of the KGV Alumni Association, volunteered at its mentoring and charity events.
