SAN ANTONIO – After his leukemia diagnosis in 2017, Reg Campbell, a professional photographer, started documenting what he thought would be seven months of treatment.
“Septua,” which is Latin for seven, was the title Campbell chose for the collection of photographs he’d taken, said Ashley Frolick, a spokeswoman for South Texas Blood and Tissue.
“The seven ended up going on longer than he expected,” Frolick said.
Frolick said she helped Campbell organize the exhibition before his death in 2020.
The “Septua” exhibition, postponed because of the pandemic, is on display through December 3 at the San Antonio Center for Photography in the 700 block of South Alamo in the King William District.
Frolick said Campbell’s exhibit is in partnership with the center, South Texas Blood and Tissue, and Be the Match, a national registry connecting patients with their donor match for life-saving bone marrow or blood stem cell transplants.
Adriana Vasquez was with South Texas Blood and Tissue helping spread the word about Campbell’s search for a blood marrow donor.
Vasquez, who is now with the Blood and Tissue Foundation, said it was one of the reasons Campbell was chronicling his journey with cancer — to give potential donors “an inside look” at the patient and the family they would be helping.
Frolick said, “He was able to do that in such a raw way. And I think it is really important for the public to see that.”
However, she said Campbell never found his perfect match, in part because of who he was.
“Unfortunately, when you look at the chances of finding a match, it is very difficult, especially for an African-American man,” she said. “It has to do with your ancestry.”
Still, they said Campbell was committed to helping others find theirs.
“The more people who join the Be the Match registry, the more likely a patient has to find the match they need,” Frolick said.
This Saturday, the public will have the opportunity during a blood and marrow registry drive from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. in the United Way parking lot in the 700 block of South Alamo. The “Septua” exhibition, on display nearby, will be open for viewing from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday.
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