Thread by @TorontoStar

Toronto family in desperate search of Filipino-Vietnamese stem cell donor for 3-year-old boy battling rare form of leukemia dlvr.it/RsfPFQ

With a stem cell transplant the only successful cure, 3-year-old Xavier's chances of survival depend on finding a match. That means someone who is also half-Vietnamese and half-Filipino, between the ages of 17 and 35 and in good general health. torstar.co/8NtI50DzHij

With a stem cell transplant the only successful cure, Xavier’s chances of survival depend on finding a match. While there is a 25 per cent chance of finding a donor within his own family, none of his immediate family members are a match.

torstar.co/8NtI50DzHij

“It’s really sad and alarming. I like to think my son needs a donor, and the chances of him having a really good match are scary,” his mother says. “Knowing this, it makes me worry. What is it going to be like for him in the next weeks or months?”

torstar.co/8NtI50DzHij

The chances of finding a match are higher if a donor shares the same ethnic background, but finding a match can be difficult considering the lack of diverse donors in the Canadian stem cell registry.

Story by @annmarieelpa

torstar.co/8NtI50DzHij