"It's hard to explain to little ones that you're not coming home, and the search for a donor has been hard," Magallon said. "I was let down not once, not twice, but nine times."
Magallon talks emotionally about her frustration with the challenges of finding a donor. Surrounded by friends and family, the mother of four tries to stay strong while undergoing chemo treatments for leukemia. She was diagnosed in July, and doctors say without a transplant, her prognosis is bleak.
"The chemotherapy in most situations similar to Blanca is not sufficient, and having a bone marrow transplant is something that gives her hope and a chance to be cured so that she can have time to raise her children," said Dr. Santosh Saraf, University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System.
According to bethematch.org, a person is more likely to find a donor from the same racial or ethnic background, but it's harder for minorities. Hispanics are 83 percent likely to find a match and African American are only 76 percent as compared to whites at 97 percent, so, Magallon is pleading for people to get tested.
"I can't breathe until I know they donated," Magallon said.
Magallon says the two biggest reasons people don't get tested is because of fear and lack of knowledge.
Blanca's GoFundMe page: http://www.gofundme.com/efokiw?pc=mb_em