Community rallies around Nash
Be The Match Registry events to be held for football player
Every time Derrick Nash gets knocked down, he is determined to get right back up.
When the Saginaw freshman was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in May 2013, two weeks before his high school graduation, the outlook wasn’t good.
At first, Nash said doctors told him the leukemia might be terminal. After a few weeks, his body responded quickly. He was able to leave the University of Michigan Health System Hospital in Ann Arbor.
“It isn’t the easiest to be completely honest,” Nash said. “I would just say that my body got used to a schedule. My body learned how to cope with the chemotherapy.”
Now, after joining the team in January on a limited basis and participating in the annual Maroon and Gold Spring game, Nash has been faced with a relapse of his leukemia for about two months, preventing his participation in the 2014 football season.
Community members and students will have the opportunity to support Nash by attending two Be The Match Registry events held on campus through Michigan Blood later this week and next week.
Nash is home in Saginaw receiving treatments, and his recovery requires a bone marrow transplant. Unfortunately, there is no match for Nash in the Michigan Blood Be The Match Registry.
“To be completely honest, this is nothing I would want to continue to go through but it’s just what I have to do,” he said. “I’ll be back at CMU.”
Nash's teammates and community have rallied around him to host two Be The Match Registry events on campus in his honor. The first will be held from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. outside the Kelly/Shorts Stadium prior to Saturday’s home game, and the second will take place from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 20, at various campus locations.
Caitlin Regan, a marrow recruitment specialist for Michigan Blood, said the chances of finding Nash a match in the registry are slim, but the registry always needs to be added to.
She explained that Nash will have a better chance at matching someone of a similar ethnic background.
“It’s very important for us to continue to diversify the registry. Currently the registry is composed of about 70 percent Caucasian donors," she said.
Regan said planning for the campus registries takes a lot of time and effort and began when a registry that was held at Nash’s high school in Saginaw back in October.
Nash has received enormous support from his team and coach, so much so that a fourth table will be hosted specially by the team from 4-8 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 20, in front of the Student Activity Center. The other three registry tables will be set up in the Health Professions Building, the Charles V. Park Library and the East Campus residence halls.
Regan said that the idea of donating bone marrow can sometimes make people hesitant to register, but that it is much more simple and painless than it is portrayed in movies and on TV.
“We’ve had a lot of really great support from the student groups,” she said. “We are really hoping for a good turnout. Just getting one person is a success for us because it only takes one person really to save someone’s life.”
Jennifer Eskridge, a sophomore from Lapeer, knows just how true that statement can be. She herself donated bone marrow last year through a procedure similar to giving plasma called a peripheral blood stem cell donation.
Eskridge’s donation went to a patient who is now fully recovered and out of the hospital. A subsequent registry event was held on campus after her donation to attract more students to the registry.
Eskridge will be speaking at the registry event on Thursday and plans to answer any questions students have about the donation process.
“I noticed that when I hosted my drive, a lot more people were willing to sign up when they heard exactly what it was,” she said. “Derrick’s a super nice guy, and I would hope CMU can pull together to help one of our own.”
Head Football Coach Dan Enos has been one of Nash's biggest supporters. Enos said Nash called to let the him know about his original condition shortly after being signed to the team.
“Obviously we rallied around him. He took a semester off and joined us in January and really had a good winter, spring and summer,” Enos said. “He’s had a little bit of a setback here, but he’s a remarkable person. I know our whole team draws a lot of strength from him.”
Enos described Nash as tough, smart and having great ball skills when it comes to his performance on the field. Nash came to CMU as a potential running back for the team.
“When he gets back to full health,he’s going to be a very good player,” Enos said. ”He’ll be a contributor here, and he has a chance to be a special player.”
Anyone between the ages of 18 to 44 can register with Be The Match. Although there is no guarantee that Nash will have a match when the registry events are over, his supporters hope the community will come out to support him and patients like him anyway.
Nash, who hopes to be well enough to attend the registry drives on campus, said he is comforted by the support he finds around him.
“It just feels good that there’s a lot of support. I don’t have to go through something like this by myself,” he said. “Nothing in life is as bad as you perceive it to be. You can get through anything; all you have to do is believe.”
