Retired NY Firefighter With 9/11-Illness Needs Bone Marrow Donor

BETHPAGE, NY—On Saturday, the Bethpage Fire Department is holding an all-day search for the perfect bone marrow donor match for a Bethpage man who contracted cancer working at Ground Zero. Brian Kevan, 52, retired from the FDNY this year due to 9/11-related illness and now his family and friends are urgently searching for a donor to help extend his life.

Kevan, who worked at a Williamsburg Brooklyn firehouse, rushed to Ground Zero on 9/11, his sister Kristin Kevan told Newsday, and then spent weeks working in the rubble. Twenty years later he is isolated at home in Bethpage because he's immunosuppressed from his 9/11-related lymphoma treatments.

Kevan's family's posts about the donor search have been spreading globally due to social media. The better the bone marrow donor match, the lower the complication rate of the transfer he needs. Unfortunately, Kevan's immediate family members were found not to be matches.

The Bethpage Fire Department event will run 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.at the Bethpage firehouse.

"He needs help and his family will exhaust all avenues to do this. Imagine if he was your son, brother, uncle or friend," the Fire Department's Facebook post reads.

Anyone aged 18-40 in good health is eligible to be added to the bone marrow donor registry.