Q.  What is a bone marrow transplant?
A.  A bone marrow transplant is a life-saving treatment for people with leukemia, lymphoma and many other diseases. Patients first 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.
In order for a patient’s body to accept these healthy cells, the donor’s tissue type needs to match the patient’s type as closely as possible. Patients who do not have a suitably matched donor in their family may search the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) Registry for an unrelated bone marrow donor or cord blood unit.

Q.  How do I become a bone marrow donor?
A.  If you are between the ages of 18 and 60 you can join the NMDP Registry. Contact the staff at The HLA Registry or at 800-336-3363 to learn about how to become a volunteer marrow donor. If you are a local New Jersey resident you can go to Community Blood Services’ donor center in Paramus, NJ. You will be asked to sign a registration form and have a tissue sample collected by the buccal swab method. A tissue sample is obtained by swabbing the inside of your cheek. Once a registration form has been completed and a sample has been collected you will be entered into the NMDP by your donor center, The HLA Registry. After you register we will ask you to update us should any of your personal information change, such as your address or your health.

Q.  I think I may have already joined. How can I verify whether I am on the Registry?
A.  Whether you join The HLA Registry or the NMDP Registry online or at a drive, you are part of the same registry. If you have previously given a blood sample or cheek cell sample to be tested for the registry, you do not need to join again. If you are unsure whether you joined, you can contact us via email or phone. You may also contact the NMDP.

Q.  Why does a person have to be between 18 and 60 to be a donor?
A.  The age limit is not meant to discriminate. The NMDP requires volunteer bone marrow donors to be between the ages of 18 and 60, which is standard medical practice. An individual must be 18 to donate because marrow donation is a surgical procedure and the person undergoing the procedure must legally be able to give informed consent. A guardian or parent cannot sign a release or give consent because unrelated bone marrow donation is a voluntary procedure and is not beneficial or life-saving to the donor. The NMDP must use chronological age to determine eligibility to protest the safety of the donor and provide the best possible treatment for the patient. With age comes a small increase in the risk of side effects from anesthesia.

Q.  Does race or ethnicity affect matching?
A.  Racial and ethnic heritage are very important factors. Because tissue types are inherited, patients are most likely to match someone of their own race or ethnicity. Today, there simply aren’t enough registered donors of diverse racial and ethnic heritage. Adding more diverse donors increases the likelihood that all patients will find life-saving matches.
Donors of these backgrounds are especially needed:

• Black or African American
• American Indian or Alaska Native
• Asian
• Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander
• Hispanic or Latino
• Mixed heritage

Q.  I need to have my HLA (human leukocyte antigen) typing done for my relative who needs a transplant but I do not want to be part of the registry. How do I do this?
A.  HLA tissue typing can be done at private laboratories. You may want to check with the patient’s transplant physician as to the preferred method of obtaining the HLA typing. The Kashi Clinical Laboratories is one of the laboratories offering private testing.
You may use the tissue typing to join the registry later if you wish. Download the donor consent/registration form and mail it to The HLA Registry with a copy of your tissue typing results. We will then enter you into the NMDP database and you will be available to help anyone worldwide.

Q.  Why is there a cost associated with joining the Registry?
A.  When you join the registry you may or may not be asked to pay the costs of your tissue typing. Costs depend on resources and support available. Your tissue type is used to match you to patients and is identified by testing a sample of cheek cells. On average, the tissue typing to add each new donor to the registry costs $52.
Sometimes, a sponsor may cover all or part of these tissue-typing costs. Other times, there is no sponsor to cover the costs, and donors are asked to pay the tissue-typing cost when they join. We count on people like you to help offset these costs. Any contribution you make to pay for tissue-typing costs is appreciated and tax deductible. You can contribute now if you would like to help cover the cost of tissue typing for new donors.

Q.  What is my commitment if I join?
A.  When you join, 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 in the world who matches your tissue type.
• Keep us updated if your address changes, you have significant health changes or you ever change your mind about being a donor.
• Respond quickly if you are contacted as a potential match for a patient.

Q.  If I join the registry, how likely is it that I will donate to someone?
A.  We cannot predict the likelihood because there is so much diversity in tissue types. You may never be identified as a match for someone needing a transplant. Or, if yours is a common tissue type, you may be identified along with a number of other potential donors who match a patient. The patient’s doctor decides which donors will be contacted.
If we call to say you are a match for a patient, you may be the one who can save the patient’s life.

Q.  What is the donation process like?
A.  Adult donors may be asked to donate in one of two ways:

• Bone marrow donation is a surgical procedure done under general or regional anesthesia so the donor experiences no pain during the collection process.
• Peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) donation involves removing a donor’s blood through a sterile needle in one arm. The blood is passed through a machine that separates out the cells used in transplants. The remaining blood is returned through the other arm.

Q.  Would I have to go to a hospital near my recipient to donate?
A.  No, you would be able to donate at an NMDP affiliated hospital close to you. Once your stem cells or marrow are collected it is hand carried by a courier to your recipient’s transplant center.