SAN ANTONIO – A San Antonio Police Officer has spent his life serving the community. Now, he needs their help in the fight for his life.
Officer Roland Perez is a husband, a father of three and a 20 year veteran of the force.
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In October, Perez was diagnosed with Myelodysplastic, a blood cancer that the South Texas Blood and Tissue Center described as "a group of cancers in which immature blood cells in the bone marrow do not mature or become healthy blood cells."
Doctors said the only cure is a marrow transplant.
“How awesome would it be to give someone else the gift of life to someone who is all out of options?” Desiree Perez, Roland’s daughter, said. “When you donate you’re giving someone extended time with their family, you’re giving them the ability to see their children get married, to watch their grandchildren grow up and graduate from school. You’re giving them more holidays, more birthdays, and more anniversaries. Why wouldn’t you want to save a life?”
Since his diagnosis, Perez has received several blood and platelet transfusions to battle his illness and will continue to need them.
“Each blood and platelet transfusion gives my dad the boost of energy he was missing,” Perez's daughter said. “He was always a blood donor before his cancer diagnosis and he knows just how essential it is to give blood and platelets to others who need them most.”
The STBTC will hold a bone marrow registry and blood donation drive for Perez on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the STBTC Donor Pavillion.
Those interested in giving platelets or blood at another time can visit the STBTC website. Those interested in registering as a marrow donor at another time can go to the Be The Match website.