Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
6-Year-Old Hopes for Bone Marrow Transplant
By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 5, 2009
Modified Mar 5, 2009
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published Mar 5, 2009
Modified Mar 5, 2009
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Jasmina Anema celebrated her 6th birthday yesterday, but she spent it in a hospital room at NYU Medical Center. Jasmina is suffering from a rare and deadly form of leukemia, which was only discovered in January. Her mother Theodora Anema, who adopted Jasmina when she was three days old, told the Daily News, "Everything became surreal because she's always been so healthy and so wonderful."
While a combination of chemotherapy is being used to help fight the disease, Dr. William Carroll, director of NYU Cancer Institute, told WCBS 2, "To ultimately cure the disease she will need a bone marrow transplant." He added, "The problem is that finding a perfect bone marrow donor is difficult because Jasmina has no full siblings. To make matters worse, African-Americans are under-represented in the donor base thus finding the perfect match is even harder." Which is why a bone marrow donor drive is planned for this weekend (details below).
Jasmina's best friend Isabelle helped make a video to spread the word about her plight—it's incredibly moving and sweet:
Singer Rihanna was so moved by the story that she urged people to sign up with DKMS (a non-profit donor center) to see if they can be a donor match. New NY Knick Chris Wilcox visited Jasmina last week and yesterday, singer Kelly Rowland sang "Happy Birthday" to Jasmina and became registered as a potential donor.
This Saturday, DKMS is organizing a bone marrow drive in search for potential donors at P.S. 41 (116 W. 11th Street), between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.; if you can't attend, you can request a donor kit from DKMS. Theodora Anema is grateful for the attention, telling WCBS 2, "There are many people who are helping which is wonderful, especially in this time of economic distress, nothing but goodness. Really New Yorkers have been fantastic, really amazing." For further information, go to One for Jasmina.
Tagged
bone marrow
bone marrow donor
Jasmina Anema
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Immanuel Wilkins is upholding NYC's jazz history. He's also dreaming up its future.
The saxophonist performs this week at the Village Vanguard.
By
Sonia Rao
Published Sep 29, 2026
Ever wish you could get paid to walk through a stranger’s house? ‘The Scout’ is for you.
A new film focuses on the strange career of a location scout in New York City.
By
Sonia Rao
Arts & Entertainment
Ever wish you could get paid to walk through a stranger’s house? ‘The Scout’ is for you.
A new film focuses on the strange career of a location scout in New York City.
By
Sonia Rao
There are 100s of places to visit during Open House New York. Here's 5 of our favorites.
By
Hannah Frishberg
A massive MTA archive ended up in a Virginia warehouse. A Brooklyn man brought it home.
By
Hannah Frishberg
How a Harry Styles pop-up in the East Village led to a nearby bookstore owner's arrest
By
Sonia Rao
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .