Since Mom's diagnosis I have been waiting to find the time to sign up to be a donor on Be The Match! She was a patient that needed a bone marrow transplant, and our first step was finding a potential donor!
Signing up to be a donor is a 2 step process if you go through the Be The Match website.
Step one is filling out the pretty short personal health history, setting up a contribution if you are wanting to do so, and providing your own information to recieve the donation kit!
Here are some commonly asked questions about becoming a donor. You can of course find more information by going to their website here.
Q: Why is there a need for people to join the Be The Match Registry?
A: Thousands of patients with blood cancers like leukemia and lymphoma, sickle cell and other life-threatening diseases depend on the Be The Match Registry® to find a match to save their life.
Q: Why are younger donors preferred? A: If you are between the ages of 18 and 44, patients especially need you. When more than one potential donor is a good HLA match for a patient, doctors will also consider other factors, including the donor’s age. Research shows that cells from younger donors lead to more successful transplants. That's because younger donors produce more and higher-quality cells than older donors.
However, if you are between the ages of 18 and 60, meet health guidelines and are willing to donate to any patient in need, you are still welcome to join the registry.
Q: What is a bone marrow transplant? A: Bone marrow transplant is a life-saving treatment for people with blood cancers like leukemia and lymphoma, sickle cell and other life-threatening diseases. First, patients undergo chemotherapy and sometimes radiation to destroy their diseased marrow. Then a donor's healthy blood-forming cells are given directly into the patient's bloodstream, where they can begin to function and multiply.
For a patient's body to accept these healthy cells, the patient needs a donor who is a close match. Seventy percent of patients do not have a donor in their family and depend on the Be The Match Registry to find an unrelated bone marrow donor or umbilical cord blood.
Q: How do I become a bone marrow donor? A: The first step to become a bone marrow donor is to join the Be The Match Registry. Doctors around the world search our registry to find a match for their patients. If a doctor selects you as a match for a patient, you may be asked to donate bone marrow or cells from circulating blood (called PBSC donation).
Q: What is my commitment if I join? A: When you join the Be The Match Registry, you make a commitment to:
Be listed on the registry until your 61st birthday, unless you ask to be removed.
Consider donating to any searching patient who matches you.
Keep us updated if your address changes, you have significant health changes or you change your mind about being a donor.
Respond quickly if you are contacted as a potential match for a patient
You have the right to change your mind about being a donor at any time. Donating is always voluntary.
Q: If I join the Be The Match Registry, how likely is it that I will donate to someone? A: On average, one in every 540 members of Be The Match Registry in the United States will go on to donate bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cells to a patient. We cannot predict the likelihood that an individual member will donate because there is so much diversity in the population. However, if you are between the ages of 18 and 44, you are 10 times more likely to be called as a marrow donor than other members of the Be The Match Registry. That's because research shows cells from younger donors lead to more successful transplants.
Every person who joins the registry gives patients hope, and new patient searches begin every day. 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 particular patient's life.
Some Common Facts and Myths about Bone Marrow Donation:
MYTH: Donating is painful and involves a long recovery.
FACT: There can be uncomfortable but short-lived side effects of donating PBSC. Due to taking a drug called filgrastim for five days leading up to donation, PBSC donors may have headaches, joint or muscle aches, or fatigue. PBSC donors are typically back to their normal routine in one to two days.
MYTH: Donating is dangerous and weakens the donor.
FACT: Though no medical procedure is without risk, there are rarely any long-term side effects. Be The Match® carefully prescreens all donors to ensure they are healthy and the procedure is safe for them. We also provide support and information every step of the way.
Because only five percent or less of a donor's marrow is needed to save the patient's life, the donor's immune system stays strong and the cells replace themselves within four to six weeks.
MYTH: Donors have to pay to donate.
FACT: Donors never pay to donate. We reimburse travel costs and may reimburse other costs on a case-by-case basis.
My Mom needed a bone marrow transplant, and because of people that have signed up to be part of the registry, she had the opportunity of at least 40 donors that were a potentional match. That's not very many, but she at least had the option! Many patients are continuing to wait for a potential match! You could save someone's life by joining the registry! It's easy and free (they do ask for a contribution, but in case that is not possible for you to do, you can still sign up!), and it's as easy as swabbing your mouth with a Q-Tip!
I will be updating when I get my swab kit to show you just how easy it is!
What a blessing it would be to be called on to donate my stem cells and save someone's life! I was a witness to how important it is to have a registry of donors waiting to be a match. Just knowing that someone out there was able to save my Mom's life makes me want to give back and be able to do the same for someone else!
Join today and lets fight the fight together!
