PORTLAND, Oregon (CMC):

The Portland Timbers United Soccer Leagues (USL) team is throwing its support behind a bone-marrow drive to help the wife of the Jamaica and Real Salt Lake (RSL) midfielder Andy Williams.

Portland's effort is being led by their defender Cameron Knowles, a former teammate of Williams at US Major League Soccer (MLS) side Real Salt Lake.

The Portland Timbers will be teaming up with DKMS, the largest bone-marrow donor centre in the world, to host a bone-marrow donor drive tomorrow at Portland's PGE Park on behalf of Marcia Williams.

Diagnosis

Last summer, Marcia Williams was diagnosed with a rare form of leukaemia called 'AML6'.

"After learning of Marcia's unfortunate situation, I felt compelled to do something," Knowles said.

The Timbers' bone-marrow donor drive will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. inside the pavilion suites at PGE Park. Several current and former Timbers players will be on hand to participate in the drive and meet with potential donors.

"I learned that the process of testing for potential donors is easy and pain-free, requiring nothing more than a cheek swab. I saw how the soccer community in Utah came together to support the cause and knew we would do the same here in Portland," Knowles said.

Six biopsies

Over the last seven months, Marcia Williams has undergone six bone-marrow biopsies but will ultimately need a bone-marrow transplant to help save her life.

DKMS has partnered with the soccer communities in Salt Lake City and now in Portland to help find a match for Marcia's rare bone marrow type.

"The more people that get tested, the more chance there is of finding someone to save not only Marcia's life, but also the lives of the more than 10,000 people that are diagnosed with blood cancers each year," said Knowles.

Meanwhile, in Utah, there is an online auction during the month of February featuring 25 player-worn MLS jerseys from throughout the league's history.

All proceeds from the auction being launched on Valentine's Day, February 14, will go directly to Soccer Unites Utah, a grass-roots charitable group raising funds to offset medical costs for Marcia.