TROY, Mich. – A Troy mother of four is in a fight for her life.
"My bone marrow -- it's not making cells the way it should be," Melissa Bowman said.
The only way for Bowman to survive is by receiving frequent blood transfusions, given through the kindness of strangers.
DETAILS: Local 4, Gardner-White team up Thursday for blood drives across Metro Detroit
When a person's bone marrow fails, they can't make the blood cells necessary for life, and in Bowman's case, it started out four years ago with a seemingly ordinary illness.
"I had a birthday party for my daughter," Bowman said. "Kind of running around, thought I just overdid it. I slept for 24 to 26 hours and I started running a fever."
Bowman went to an emergency room, where she was found to be severely anemic, leading to a bone marrow biopsy that uncovered aggressive systematic mastocytosis.
Aggressive systematic mastocytosis is an extreme form of a disease that causes life-threatening allergic reactions and bone marrow failure.
"After they confirmed with the bone marrow biopsy, they gave me 41 months to live from then," Bowman said. "I'm now at 48 months."
The blood transfusions are part of what's kept Bowman alive.
"I've been transfusion-dependent since then," Bowman said. "Every month, I have to have a transfusion."
Since her diagnosis, Bowman has had 53 units of blood. Dr. Abhinav Deol a hematologist-oncologist with Karmanos Cancer Institute, knows how important blood is to patients such as Bowman.
"We need to have a constant supply through the Red Cross so these patients can get support during potentially curative treatment," Deol said.
Blood donations can never be taken for granted.
"There has been twice that I've only been able to get one unit because they were low in the wintertime," Bowman said.
Recognizing the importance of blood and the impact of intermittent shortages, Bowman's sister, Sher Wilson, has been organizing frequent blood drives to help give back to the effort that's keeping her sister alive.
Bowman's family has already repaid its debt of gratitude many times over.
"We have collected, I do believe, almost 350 units," Wilson said.
The blood has helped hundreds of people.
"Anytime somebody decides to donate a unit of blood, they have to keep in mind that they're not helping one individual patient," Wilson said. "They're helping multiple patients with that one act of kindness."
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Unfortunately, Bowman's disease has progressed.
"I'm on a sinking ship and I'm either going to go under or I'm going to jump off the sinking ship and start swimming," Bowman said. "So I've been swimming."
A bone marrow transplant is Bowman's only option, and even though it's extremely risky because of the nature of her illness, she remains positive.
"I haven't found the shore yet, but I will," Bowman said. "I'll get there."
Bowman's bone marrow transplant is scheduled for Friday, and her brother is a 100 percent donor match. If the transplant is successful, it should completely cure her. She thanked everyone who has been supportive and the blood donors who have kept her alive the past four years.
Bowman isn't alone in needing blood. The Red Cross said there is an emergency need for blood donations right now, particularly of Type O blood.
Local 4 has teamed up with Gardner-White and the Red Cross for blood drives. The drives are being held from 11 a.m. to 7:45 p.m. Thursday at the Gardner-White stores in Auburn Hills, Canton, Macomb Township, Warren, Waterford Township, Taylor and Novi and from 11 a.m. to 7:15 p.m. at the Brighton store.