A few weeks ago, I wrote about being a blood donor and the good that you can do by donating blood and platelets. I have a personal connection to that right now - my brother-in-law is going through a clinical trial for a rare blood disorder called Aplastic Anemia. It requires him to receive platelets and blood transfusions on a regular basis. Unfortunately, if this clinical trial fails, my brother-in-law will most likely need a bone marrow transplant. Which is why I’m here today to talk to you about an organization called Be The Match. A year ago I saw an article about Be The Match, an organization that that is operated by the National Marrow Donor Program to “helping every patient get the lifesaving transplant they need”. I immediately signed up and went through the donor process.
Be The Match was founded in 1986 after Dr. and Mrs. Robert and Sherry Graves turned to a non-related bone marrow donor to save their daughter Laura’s life after she had been diagnosed with leukemia. Up until that point, bone marrow donations had only been done with blood relatives. The non-related donation worked and from that point, the Graves worked with other patient families, doctors, congressional support and even funding from the U.S. Navy to create a national registry of volunteers willing to donate bone marrow. You can find out more about their story here. Becoming a donor is incredibly easy and honestly, if you’re able to, it’s a no-brainer. If you’re inclined to join the registry, go here. After answering a list of questions, they’ll send you a donor kit that consists of more literature on the organization and a swab kit that you use to send your DNA back to Be The Match. After they receive and process everything, you’ll get a donor card in the mail to keep on you.
When you get your license, at least in the United States, you can opt whether or not to be an organ donor. If you choose to do so, you’ll have it marked as so on your license card. This indicates that if something were to happen to you and you were to die, your organs would be donated to those in need. With Be The Match, you have the opportunity to be a living donor - donating bone marrow or a piece of your liver does not require your life. So many patients out there rely on these types of donors. Again, if you’re able bodied, I implore you to look into this fantastic organization. Go to www.bethematch.org for more information!
