  |  |
March 15, 1999. Bobby McQuin sets out on his attempt to cross America by bicycle. He plans to cover the 6,900 kilometer stretch from San Diego to Virginia, where his estimated day of arrival is July 1. At the age of eight Bobby received the terrible news that he suffered from acute lymphatic leukemia, and embarked on a six-year battle against that condition. Despite all his effort, Bobby suffered a relapse, and five years ago opted for treatment through bone marrow transplants. That proved successful, and he emerged from the process totally cured.
Today, Bobby is a robust 19 year old in fine health. What's more, inspired by a sense of mission to be of service to children suffering from cancer, and supportive to their families, he has put his thoughts into action. His personal project: "ONE VOICE ACROSS AMERICA: A Ride to Fight Childhood Cancer."
|
|
| | | |
|
 | |
A critical element of this coast-to-coast adventure naturally consists of exchanges with the children battling cancer at his many stops and their families, interviews with local radio stations, visits to meet with city mayors and other personal contacts. Updates on his trip, meanwhile, are carried on the Internet.
On the website, Bobby's mother Bess offers the following comments about the objectives: "Our goal is to increase understanding of the situation faced by families like us, win support for the project, and cooperation through donations for the children. In response to her appeals, an on-line donation program has already begun.
|
|
| | | |
|
 | |
This project is distinguished by the participation of everyone in Bobby's family. His younger brother Shawn, for example, will be cycling along the entire route. His parents will be driving a trailer house, where they will serve as the communications center with the outside world, while also taking care of their eight kids. Greg, another younger brother, was the bone marrow donor for Bobby.
With bone marrow transplants, it is critical that the tissue structures of the donor and the recipient match. In Bobby's case, he was lucky enough to immediately find a donor in his own brother. However, the chances of such compatibility in a sibling are around 25 percent. In the other 75 percent of patients, there is no choice but to search for a match from among other potential donors.
|
|
| | | |
|
 | |
In such cases, the hospital will access donor databases, and search for the best possible donor. The world's largest such database is operated in the Netherlands, and contains data on nearly five million willing donors. With a higher probability of matches among those of the same race, it naturally makes sense that persons of Japanese descent may be very likely to locate donors in Japan. At any rate, the search for compatible donors is truly global in scale.
When a donor is found, it is possible to be supplied with tissue within a period of only several days. This is a genuine medical revolution, totally inconceivable before the popularization of the Internet.
|
|
| | | |
|
 | |
In the U.S., the use of the Internet is now a natural step for patients in searching out the best hospital for their condition. Likewise, patients living in isolation rely upon e-mail and cyber space chat rooms to stay in touch with the outside, patients and family member support groups utilize websites, and other examples exist of how the Internet plays a key role in so many different aspects of medical treatment.
Clearly, the Internet Generation is already firmly entrenched in the field of medicine, and is a vital presence for the patients being treated as well.
|
|
| | | |
|
 | |
●One Voice Across America
Bess, Shawn and Bobby himself write the travelogue together, forward the photographs taken along the way to the web master, who constantly updates their progress.
http://www.onevoiceusa.com/
|
|
| | | |
|
| |
|
