Classmates helping Dallas cancer patient find a stem cell donor

Friends, family and strangers are trying to help a Dallas college student battling cancer.

Chris Lewis has never met a stranger. The 27-year-old Parker University chiropractic student thrives on helping others get better.

But at the end of January, Lewis got a life-changing diagnosis that is forcing him to be the one asking for help.

Lewis is battling an aggressive form of leukemia known as AML. Doctors say it starts in the bone marrow and moves quickly into the blood.

Since getting the devastating news a month and a half ago, Lewis has undergone two rounds of chemotherapy. Still, you won't hear him complaining.

“I never looked at it, ‘Why me?’ I'd rather it be me because I know I can take it,” he said. “I rather it be me than anyone else in the world.”

At Lewis’ side is his wife, Abby Key, and her 10-year-old daughter. They took a happy family photo shortly before he lost all of his hair.

“Taking care of him is not something I'm not used to doing because he doesn't let me normally,” Key said. “It comes easy because I just love him. You'd do anything for him.”

But despite their optimism, the reality is Lewis is in need of a life-saving stem cell transplant. That's where these folks come in.

With help from the nonprofit DKMS, Lewis' school put on a stem cell drive on Friday. A simple swab of the cheek could identify a match for Lewis. Dozens of people, many of them classmates, showed up to get tested.

“This is a family. We're all here for the same reason, and that's to make people better. And these people are here making me better,” Lewis said. “Take one day out of your life to give me the rest of mine. I can never say thank you enough for giving me my life.”

Lewis needs to find a match soon. There's another stem cell drive being held Saturday at Parker University in Dallas from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Donations can also be made online at: http://www.dkms.org/chirochris