Myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS) are a group of disorders in which a person's bone marrow does not produce enough functioning blood cells. A lack of red blood cells affects energy levels and a lack of white blood cells means you're more prone to infection. Anyone who's met my Dad knows that when he's at his best he is the most energetic, bonkers, and unstoppable guy (try telling him that he doesn't actually need to do 5 different things around the house at the same time). That's one of the ways we knew he wasn't feeling right. He was grumpy, all the time. It took a long time for him to get diagnosed with MDS because, well, it's really rare. 

And Dad has to be special. Not only does he have a rare blood disorder, he also has a rare type of it called 5q minus. It's kept stable now that he's found the right medication for it.

Given that it's so rare, it's been hard for scientists to pinpoint the cause of MDS. In some cases there are risk factors (surviving a nuclear blast for one) but often they're not really sure. Research is ongoing and hopefully, soon, they'll be able to figure this one out. 

Dad put up with me constantly trying to beat him in swimming races (he'd cheat and swim butterfly which is so not fair). What better way to raise money to continue research than to do a Swimathon. Thanks Dad!