Yankees support fight against blood cancer

Those fans with tickets for Saturday’s Yankees-Mariners game at Yankee Stadium will get a different view of the bleachers. Instead of the usual collection of fans wearing Yankees gear in the club’s traditional navy blue and white colors, a sea of red will take over the bleachers.

The Yankees, in partnership with DKMS, the world’s largest bone marrow donor center, will distribute red caps to all spectators who enter the Stadium prior to the start of the 1:05 p.m. game. The mass of red will launch a new initiative to encourage all New York fans to take action against blood cancer. Fans will be urged to “get swabbed” and sign up as potential blood marrow donors.

“The New York Yankees are all about winning,” Yankees chief operating officer Lonn Trost said. “We are incredibly proud to be associated with DKMS, and we’re excited to help them with the noble fight against blood cancer. We know our fans, indeed all New York fans, will unite to help delete blood cancer.”

Every four minutes, someone is diagnosed with blood cancer. Every 10 minutes, someone dies from the disease. Blood cancer is the second leading cause of all cancer deaths in the United States and kills more children than any other disease. Many deaths may be prevented if more people donate their blood marrow.

Katharina Hart, chief inspiration officer of Delete Blood Cancer and DKMS, said, “The Yankees have been amazing in supporting us in our fight to delete blood cancer. The fourth of August will be a special day for everyone in the U.S. who is fighting to overcome this disease. It is call to action and a symbol of support. I promise we will not stop here.”

Blood cancers such as leukemia, lymphoma and myeloma attack the foundation of a healthy, functioning body by sabotaging the production of healthy blood cells. In many cases, the only treatment option is a bone marrow transplant from a matching door. If a match can be found, a life may be saved. However, six out of 10 patients who could benefit from a transplant will never receive one. There is a 30-percent chance that a sibling is a match to a patient. For the other 70 percent, a match must be found from an unrelated donor.

The only way to tap unrelated donors is to get as many donors as possible. That is where DKMS comes in. With generous support from its founding corporate sponsor, leading beauty company Coty Inc., DKMS is dedicated to increasing the number of potential donors and facilitating both matches and transplants.

Founded in 1991 in Germany by Peter Harf and his wife Mechtild’s physician, Dr. Gerhard Ehninger, DKMS is the world’s largest bone marrow donor center with more than 3.6 million registered donors. More than 31,000 of DKMS’ donors have helped save lives. DKMS will soon be renamed Delete Blood Cancer.

George Cleary, president of Coty Beauty Americas, said, “It is an incredible honor to have as distinguished an organization as the New York Yankees join us in the fight against blood cancer. We are confident that the Yankees’ championship winning mentality combined with Coty’s and DKMS’ passion for this cause will have a profound impact on the fight against blood cancer.”