How is a person chosen to be a donor for bone marrow?

How is a person chosen to be a donor for bone marrow?

How is a bone marrow match determined? Doctors look for a donor who matches their patient’s tissue type, specifically their human leukocyte antigen (HLA) tissue type. The closer the match between the patient’s HLA markers and yours, the better for the patient.

What is the 1st step to being a bone marrow donor?

The first step to being someone’s cure is to join Be The Match Registry®. If you are between the ages of 18-40, committed to donating to any patient in need, and meet the health guidelines, there are two ways to join. If you are between the ages of 18 and 35 patients especially need you.

Who can be a donor for bone marrow transplant?

They accept donors between the ages of 18 and 60. But because bone marrow transplant is most successful with younger donors, people ages 18 to 44 are preferred. Donors must be in excellent health. Certain diseases, medications, treatments and weight limits can exclude you from becoming a donor.

Can anyone be a bone marrow donor?

Everyone, age 18-44, who is in good health, and willing to donate to any patient, is encouraged to join the Be The Match Registry. Prescription hormone therapy does NOT exclude you from joining the registry.

Can a parent be a bone marrow donor?

The question often is asked as to whether a relative other than a sibling can be used as an HLA-matched donor for BMT. There is a very small chance, about one percent, that a parent may be closely matched with his or her child and can be used in the same manner as a matched sibling.

How many donors are in the Be the Match Registry?

The U.S.-based Be The Match Registry® is the world’s largest and most diverse donor registry with nearly 12.5 million potential marrow donors and more than 209,000 donated cord blood units.

Do you have to weigh a certain amount to donate bone marrow?

Medical guidelines for cellular therapy product donation (such as peripheral blood stem cells and bone marrow) include an assessment of body mass index (BMI), which is calculated from weight and height. There is not a minimum weight requirement. However, there are maximum BMI guidelines for donating marrow.

Do you get paid to be a bone marrow donor?

An appeals court has ruled that people who donate bone marrow through a newer and less invasive technology can be paid for doing so, overturning a decades-old law that makes it a felony to pay donors for bone marrow and organs.

Are there risks associated with being a bone marrow donor?

There is also the risk that the procedure could cause injury to nerves and blood vessels near the site of the marrow withdrawal and damage to the bone. After donating bone marrow you may be sore in the region of your hip for a week or slightly more.

What is involved in being a bone marrow Doner?

Donating bone marrow is a surgical procedure done under general or regional anesthesia in a hospital. While a donor receives anesthesia, doctors use needles to withdraw liquid marrow from the back of the pelvic bone. PBSC donation is a non-surgical procedure done in an outpatient clinic.

What happens if you are a bone marrow donor?

The bone marrow donation process. Donors usually go home the same day of the surgery and can return to normal activity within 1 week. Common side effects include nausea, headache, and fatigue, most often related to the anesthesia. Bruising or discomfort in the lower back is also common.