January 14 2011

Be The Match^® has announced six cities will host a Be The One Run in 2011. The cities are Minneapolis/St. Paul, Portland, Charlotte, Houston, Atlanta and Long Beach.

These run/walk fundraising events help give patients with leukemia, lymphoma, and 70 other life-threatening diseases a second chance at life. Every step participants take helps patients receive the bone marrow transplant they need.

Specific event dates and venue locations will be announced in the next few weeks. Visit BeTheOneRun.org for more information and updates.

A marrow transplant is often the best or only hope of a cure for more than 10,000 patients in the U. S. every year. These patients do not have a donor match in their family, and rely on the Be The Match Registry^® to find an unrelated marrow donor and receive the transplant they need.

Be The One Runs bring together marrow donors, marrow transplant recipients, patients searching for a marrow donor, transplant doctors, caregivers and a host of other supporters to highlight the need for unrelated marrow transplants.

With a 5K, 1K Fun Run and Tot Trot, Be The One Run is perfect for the entire family and for people of all fitness levels. The Charlotte Be The One Run will be presented by Hendrick Motorsports, which has a long-standing tradition of supporting patients in need of marrow transplants.

Through Be The Match Foundation^®, Be The One Run raises funds to support marrow transplant research, help patients with uninsured treatment costs and add more potential marrow donors to the Be The Match Registry – giving more patients hope for a cure.

In 2010, Be The One Run was piloted in Atlanta and Long Beach. Due to the tremendous participant response, Be The Match decided to launch in six cities this year.

“Be The One Run reminds us all of the life-saving impact everyday people can make,” said Christine Fleming, president of Be The Match Foundation. “It invites participants to walk or run in the footsteps of patient families searching for a donor or those who have undergone a life-saving marrow transplant thanks to the kindness of a stranger and the advances in medical science.”

Take the first step. Visit BeTheOneRun.org to register, fundraise and volunteer.