Changing The World One Hub at a Time

There are some truly heartwarming Hubs out there on HubPages, but this one in particular really hits it out of the ballpark.

Last week, Hubber frogdropping published a Hub on bone marrow donation encouraging readers to register to become bone marrow donators.  She shared that one of her friends was recently diagnosed with Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and needs a bone marrow donor, and that it takes a lot of searching to find a match.  She also shared the process of becoming a bone marrow donor and that she herself had signed up.

This Hub was just the thing that another Hubber, sueroy333, needed as a reminder to sign up – and she did!  In the comments section of frogdropping’s Hub, sueroy333 shared that she had just donated a kidney to her child, and that bone marrow donation would be a breeze in comparison!

It’s so exciting to think that one Hubber’s Hub could inspire such real and immediate action in the name of a good cause.

We took some time to talk with frogdropping about her Hub and her thoughts on the inspiring turn of events – you’ll find our exchange below:

What inspired you to write the Hub?

The fact that my brother-in-law Steven recently found out that he has CLL – Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia. Naturally it’s been a big shock for him and my sister. When I found out I felt impotent, I had no way of making the news easier to bear or easier to live with.

Steven is young to contract the type of Leukemia he has, it usually strikes the over 55’s – so it’s more difficult for the doctors to deliver a longer term prognosis. So – having found out what he has I asked my sister if she thought it ok that I wrote an article about it.

She was fine with that, so I chose to write about bone marrow donation as there’s so few on the register. In comparison to the global community – 15 or so million out of almost 7 billion people is pretty low. I figured those that are forever trying to raise awareness would welcome one more article.

Did you expect someone to take action on your suggestion to sign up for bone marrow donation so soon?

No I didn’t. It was a great feeling. I hope others are inspired to do the same. The procedure really isn’t as frightening as many would think – and if a registered individual does come up as a match – there’s nothing more awesome than the gift of life.

I hope down the line others that may read it will feel comfortable enough with the idea of donating bone marrow to go right ahead and register. There are a few myths surrounding the procedure – like it’s really painful (it’s not), it makes the donor very ill (it doesn’t) or even that you might get some issues relating to a bone marrow disorder down the line (you won’t).

The saddest story that I read whilst researching it was about a woman that found four matches on the register. Each of the donors decided against donating when it came to being asked – consequently she lost her life. In the US upwards of 47% of those on the register refuse when it comes to the actual donation.

Educating people is the way forward – which can only be done by raising awareness.

Do you know of any other Hubbers whose Hubs have supported a good cause like this?

I have noticed and read some during my time on HubPages – some have been personal accounts of their journey with an illness. I remember once reading about Destrier’s journey with Lymphona – My Journey With Lymphona Cancer which struck me as being useful and informative for those experiencing through the same illness.

Others are written like mine – as a means of informing and educating people and not necessarily because they’ve been through the subject they’re writing about. RedElf wrote a hub about surviving domestic violence – Domestic Violence – A shelter from the storm MPG Narratives wrote a hub about Autism – Autism and Autistic Children

The above are but three – there are hundreds around the site. This goes to show that we’re not always writing because we’re trying to make money online. Sometimes Hubbers spend their time writing about subjects that are personal, close to their heart or simply because they know of a cause that needs more exposure that it’s been getting.

I guess that’s a part of what makes Hubpages so unique – we have so many different people, sharing a wealth of information across a broad spectrum of topics that’ are informative, enlightening and sometimes just plain touching.

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Thanks, frogdropping, for writing the Hub and taking the time to chat with us!

To learn more about bone marrow donation, check out frogdropping’s Hub: Bone Marrow Donation- Are You Registered