SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Today Travis Arychuk is 26 years old, fit as a fiddle, with a wife and a great career. However, 13 years ago, Travis was a very sick kid fighting for his life. At 12 he was diagnosed with an aggressive form of leukemia and the only way to save him was through a stem cell transplant.

There were no matches on the worldwide registry and a Yellowknife registry rally didn't turn up any matches either. Time was running out. Finally a doctor recommended a very new procedure, where Travis' father Peter could donate stem cells from his bone marrow, even though he was not a match.

It was a risky procedure, with a 20 per cent chance of success. Doctors had to suppress Travis' immune system in order for his body to accept his father's stem cells. Fortunately, it worked.

"I was kind of like a guinea pig. Last resort and no options," Travis said.

Even as a 13-year-old, Travis said he was aware of how life-threatening his illness was.

"Once we found out that there were no (matching) donors on the list I started to figure it out pretty quick," he said.

Several serious and otherwise terminal illnesses, including some cancers, can be treated with stem-cell transplants. The hard part is finding a match. That is the driving force behind The Stem Cell Challenge - a Canada-wide rally to get people registered on the stem cell database. The Yellowknife Fire Department and Medic North are heading up The Stem Cell Challenge in Yellowknife next month.

"It's very non-invasive and very easy to do," said Gerda Groothuizen, challenge organizer and deputy fire chief of life, safety and prevention with the fire department.

All that's required is four cheek swabs and the participants do it themselves, she said. The swabs are then sent to Canadian Blood Services, where the cells are analyzed and logged on to One-Match, the Canadian stem cell registry which is part of the international registry organization.

"If they find a match, they contact the potential donor and say, 'You're a match to someone who is dying, are you still interested in helping this person?'" Groothuizen said. From there they do blood testing to make sure the match is a good one. Then, if the donor is willing they begin the process of paperwork and tests to donate to the sick person, she said.

"What a fantastic way of saving a life. It takes so little on our part to keep someone alive," Groothuizen said. At the donation stage, either bone marrow is extracted from the donor's hip or they're given medication to draw the stem cells out of the marrow into the blood, and then the stem-cell rich blood is donated, she said.

Part of reason Travis couldn't find a match was because the blood must match ethnically and he is Metis. It makes it all the more important for Northerners to get on the registry, said Teri Arychuk, Travis' mother.

"We can't stress enough how important it is, especially in the North, that people get out there and do this," said Teri.

"It's huge," added Travis. "Just to have everyone who shows up in the bank, it's only going to increase someone's odds of survival."

The clinics will be held between May 16 and May 22, at a variety of locations including Diavik mine, Ekati mine, Centre Square Mall, the Co-op and city hall council chambers.

People must be between 17 and 50 years of age to participate and bring either their health card or photo identification.

"It's just a very, very simple thing to do that could save somebody else's life. And I think it's probably a good thing to have on your resume, 'saved a life,'" laughed Peter.

They can laugh now, but 13 years ago it was a scary time for the family. "We're one of the miracle stories," said Teri.

"Travis is now 26 years old and very, very healthy. We're very fortunate.