MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--For 16-year-old Nivia Charles, of Oakland, Calif., the future is uncertain—but not because she doesn’t know what she wants to be when she grows up. The aspiring pediatric oncologist has sickle cell anemia, an inherited blood disorder that is often life-threatening.
Nivia’s best hope for a cure, and a future free from pain and frequent hospital visits, is a bone marrow transplant. But like many African Americans in need of transplants, Nivia doesn’t have a matched donor.
That’s why Be The Match® is raising awareness about the critical need for more African American bone marrow donors this July, which is African American Bone Marrow Awareness Month. Be The Match connects patients with their donor match for a life-saving bone marrow or umbilical cord blood transplant.
Throughout July, donor registry events nationwide will give African Americans the chance to join the Be The Match Registry®, the world’s largest registry of potential bone marrow donors. A special online promo code, “AABMAM,” also can be used to join the registry online anytime during the month. And a dedicated landing page (www.BTMItsOnYou.org) will share the facts about what bone marrow donation is really all about—confronting common myths that it’s painful or costly—along with inspiring stories of real people who have donated.
“It only takes a few minutes to join the Be The Match Registry, and if one day you’re asked to donate, you could be the only one out of millions who can save a person’s life,” explains Kimberly Washington, a 22-year-old college student at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC). Washington donated peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs) to a woman with leukemia in 2009. “The possibility of saving someone’s life made the process so special for me. I would donate again in a heartbeat.”
Ancestry is important in matching patients to donors. Since 2004, the number of transplants among African Americans facilitated by Be The Match has doubled, but African American patients still have the lowest odds of finding a match compared to all other populations—and the most diverse tissue types, which makes the matching process even more challenging.
“Be The Match has made incredible strides toward increasing the diversity of potential donors on the registry,” said Jeffrey W. Chell, M.D., chief executive officer of Be The Match. “But more African American registry members are needed now. It’s on you. Join the Be The Match Registry and spread the word. You can help us save more lives.”
To learn what bone marrow donation is really all about and to sign up as a committed registry member, visit www.BTMItsOnYou.org.
About Be The Match
For people with life-threatening blood cancers—like leukemia and lymphoma—or other diseases, a cure exists. Be The Match connects patients with their donor match for a life-saving marrow or umbilical cord blood transplant. People can contribute to the cure as a member of the Be The Match Registry, financial contributor or volunteer. Be The Match provides patients and their families one-on-one support, education, and guidance before, during and after transplant.
Be The Match is operated by the National Marrow Donor Program® (NMDP), a nonprofit organization that matches patients with donors, educates health care professionals and conducts research so more lives can be saved. To learn more about the cure, visit BeTheMatch.org or call 1 (800) MARROW-2.
