Becoming a bone marrow donor is as simple as 1-2-3. Just answer a few questions online, complete some brief health screening tests, and provide your donation appointment preferences.
how to become a bone marrow donor
Becoming a bone marrow donor is safe and easy, but it’s not free. In order to make sure that only people with the best chance of being a match are selected, transplants usually include some combination of chemotherapy, radiation therapy or both. Depending on where you live, your donation may be performed at a university hospital or private practice clinic.
How donated cells help patients
A healthy blood system is always making new blood-forming cells. These are necessary for survival. If the body begins making diseased cells or not enough healthy cells, a bone marrow or cord blood transplant may be the best treatment and only potential cure.
During transplant, the donor’s healthy blood-forming cells are put into the patient’s bloodstream. These donated cells move through the patient’s bloodstream and settle in the bones. This is where the donated cells will produce new blood-forming cells. Learn more about how a transplant works.
Each patient needs a donor who is a close HLA match. This is different than blood type. Since HLA is part of your unique DNA, every person who joins the registry gives patients hope for a cure. It’s also why there’s a need for more people to join, especially people whose backgrounds are:
- African American or Black
- Asian or Pacific Islander
- American Indian & Alaskan Native
- Hispanic or Latino
- White
You may never be identified as a match for someone, or you might be one of a number of potential matches. But you may also be the only one on the registry who can save a patient’s life. The most important thing you can do is stay committed and respond if contacted.
While you wait to be called as a bone marrow donor, you can continue to support the cause by:
- Joining our social media communities and sharing your story
- Attending events
- Becoming a volunteer
- Contributing financially to help support blood cancer patients
There are only a small amount of donors that can match any given patient. Although doctors can request similar donors by ethnic background, age and sex, they may not always find what they need. That’s where you come in; although you may not be a perfect match for someone in the registry right now, the more people that join, the better chance there could be for someone who needs it down the line. While most people think of joining a registry as a way to help their family members, friends or even themselves find a match and possibly save their life, we believe that most people are unaware that by simply registering to become an unrelated donor it can help 100’s of people each year.
