In a video message on X, formerly Twitter, John J. York (Mac, GH) explained the very personal reason that he is taking a leave from the show. “I said I was going to give you an update on the reason I’m taking a little hiatus from GENERAL HOSPITAL,” he began. “And here it is. So last December, of ’22, I was diagnosed with myelodysplastic syndromes, or MDS, and multiple smoldering myeloma, two blood and bone marrow disorders. Over the past many months, I’ve had three bone marrow biopsies, many chemo treatments, I have another one coming up in a couple of weeks, and I’m closing in on a blood stem cell transplant. I’ve been working with some wonderful people at Be The Match to find a potential donor on their registry. If it’s possible and you would consider being a donor, joining their registry, for not just me but thousands and thousands of other people who are in need of a donor, go to bethematch.org/matchformac.” He added, “You can find out all the information you need to know to possibly join the registry, make a financial donation, anything you might want to consider.” He concluded by saying, “I just want to say thanks for all the support over the years. This isn’t good-bye, this is just, ‘So long.’ I’ll have to take a break [from GH] for at least three, maybe four months, but I’ll be back. [Thanks] for your patience, thanks for your time, thanks for your prayers. I’ll keep you updated. Talk to you soon.” While eligible donors must be 18-40, anyone is welcome to make a potentially life-saving donation to Be The Match. For more info, click here www.bethematch.org.matchformac.
