In the wake of “Good Morning America” anchor Robin Roberts’ MDS diagnosis, ABC News is holding a bone marrow drive today for its employees in New York and Washington. The drive is held in partnership with Be the Match, a non-profit organization that matches potential donors with patients.
Roberts was joined at the New York event by George Stephanopoulos, Lara Spencer and ABC News president Ben Sherwood, who said the drive was just the beginning of an effort in honor of “our friend, colleague and inspiration, Robin Roberts.”
“Ben Sherwood and others have assured me that I’m going to have a job, I’m going to get paid, all those things that people who sometimes face these kind of illnesses do not have,” Roberts told TVNewser at the event. “And I know that I have it better than most, so why not try and do something to help those that need a little assistance? It just kind of takes your mind off of what you’re dealing with.”
Roberts’ donor is her sister Sally-Ann, who is a local anchor in New Orleans. More than 11,000 people have registered to be donors with Be the Match since Roberts announced her diagnosis earlier this month.
“She gives out so much strength by the way she handles it,” Stephanopoulos told TVNewser. “And she also gets a lot back by seeing the reaction.”
Roberts and Stephanopoulos said that “GMA” will continue to incorporate coverage of MDS and bone marrow donations into the show’s programming.
“There’s no roadmap. There’s never been a morning show anchor going through MDS,” Roberts said. “We’ll do the appropriate reporting on it. I cannot wait for the story when we have somebody here who’s matched with someone who has been waiting. That will be a great story, a story I can’t wait to see. And it will happen.”