BUKHOSI Mtukushe is trained to save lives and heal people, but tragically he cannot heal himself.
Mtukushe, 30, a medical doctor in Cape Town, was diagnosed in 2006 with Hodgkins lymphoma, a form of cancer that requires a bone marrow transplant.
The high-spirited Mtukushe said yesterday that as difficult as it has been, he had accepted his fate.
The doctor quit his job because he could no longer keep up with the rigours of the profession.
He said his bone marrow was dysfunctional, affecting the production of red and white blood cells which, he says, "leaves me fatigued on a regular basis".
He also needs to guard against doing anything that would lead to bleeding because when he receives a blood transfusion the procedure merely "keeps me going until the next transfusion".
Mtukushe needs a blood transfusion every five weeks.
Furthermore, cultural beliefs, stigma and a lack of awareness stand in the way of much-needed help.
Tina Botha, chief executive of the Sunflower Fund that runs a bone marrow registry tasked with seeking donors for cancer patients with leukaemia and Hodgkins lymphoma, said the organisation faced "religious and cultural hurdles", mostly from potential black donors.
Currently only 17percent of the 64000 donors on the South African Bone Marrow Registry are black and this, according to Mtukushe, "hampers any possibility of finding a match".
Donors sought after for the registry are male, black, coloured and Indian aged between 18 and 50.
Potential donors should have no history of hepatitis or sexually transmitted diseases, weigh at least 50kg, and be a South African citizen who is committed.
Interested parties can contact the fund's toll-free number on 0800-12-10-82 to become a potential donor.
DOCTOR CAN'T HEAL HIMSELF
BUKHOSI Mtukushe is trained to save lives and heal people, but tragically he cannot heal himself.
Mtukushe, 30, a medical doctor in Cape Town, was diagnosed in 2006 with Hodgkins lymphoma, a form of cancer that requires a bone marrow transplant.
The high-spirited Mtukushe said yesterday that as difficult as it has been, he had accepted his fate.
The doctor quit his job because he could no longer keep up with the rigours of the profession.
He said his bone marrow was dysfunctional, affecting the production of red and white blood cells which, he says, "leaves me fatigued on a regular basis".
He also needs to guard against doing anything that would lead to bleeding because when he receives a blood transfusion the procedure merely "keeps me going until the next transfusion".
Mtukushe needs a blood transfusion every five weeks.
Furthermore, cultural beliefs, stigma and a lack of awareness stand in the way of much-needed help.
Tina Botha, chief executive of the Sunflower Fund that runs a bone marrow registry tasked with seeking donors for cancer patients with leukaemia and Hodgkins lymphoma, said the organisation faced "religious and cultural hurdles", mostly from potential black donors.
Currently only 17percent of the 64000 donors on the South African Bone Marrow Registry are black and this, according to Mtukushe, "hampers any possibility of finding a match".
Donors sought after for the registry are male, black, coloured and Indian aged between 18 and 50.
Potential donors should have no history of hepatitis or sexually transmitted diseases, weigh at least 50kg, and be a South African citizen who is committed.
Interested parties can contact the fund's toll-free number on 0800-12-10-82 to become a potential donor.
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