Image via The Fashion Spot
When Eva Herizgova heard the story of Kai Anderson, a young boy who was diagnosed with leukemia and needs a bone marrow transplant, she decided to donate her time to help save lives. Unfortunately the database of matches is so small right now that only three in ten patients find a match.
“This is the kind of story that hurts anyone,” Eva said of her experience meeting the boy’s family. “But as a mother, it went straight to my heart. I looked at the man and said across the table, ‘What can I do to help?’”
As soon as she found out about Deutsche Knochenmarkspenderdatei, or DKMS, an organization working to raise awareness and find matches, Eva found a new cause. The supermodel is now invested in Swab a Cheek and Save a Life campaign. By simply taking a five-second test, which involves swabbing the inside of your cheek, matches can be found for those suffering from the disease. “The ultimate goal of the Get Swabbed and Save a Life initiative is to build the world’s DNA database so that the tens of thousands of people who desperately need a lifesaving bone marrow transplant can find their genetic match,” said Eva.
So far the database has 1.8 million donors, but Eva has higher hopes. “I thought if I could use my connections and my kind of celebrity to get the word out, maybe we could save this boy,” she said. “But now my ambitions are bigger. I want everyone to get tested.”
