The facts about donation in 30 seconds or less
NMDP donor and celebrity advocate AJ Rafael teamed up with Dr. Ron Jacob from NMDP and content creators Aja Dang and Melemaikalani Makalapua to answer the most popular questions about blood stem cell donation. Find out how donation changes lives… maybe even yours!
View more videos like this on the NMDP YouTube channel.
View more videosWe need lifesavers like you
You can help increase the odds—about half of AANHPI patients do not have a matching blood stem cell donor on the NMDP Registry. When people who are Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander register, more AANHPI lives will be saved.
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Not sure if you’ve already joined? Contact us online or give us a call at 1 (800) MARROW-2 and we’ll be happy to look you up.
Stories of hope
Meet AJ
Filipino
Blood stem cell donor
AJ Rafael is an accomplished singer-songwriter, actor and content creator, known for his studio album “Red Roses,” which reached the iTunes and Billboard charts. AJ has over 4 million followers across YouTube, TikTok, Instagram and Facebook. His theatre project include “Burn all Night,” “Mamma Mia!,” “Grease,” “Spring Awakening,” among others. The city of Los Angeles named AJ the Filipino American Game Changer in 2018. He will be featured in several upcoming TV and film projects in 2023 and beyond.
Meet Molly
Korean
Blood stem cell donor
“I was hoping I’d get called. I’m part of a minority group—I’m South Korean. I was actually adopted by my parents when I was about 4 months old. So, I guess it made me think about if there are other people out there like me who, say, need a transplant, and they don’t have family members directly that can be a match or even potentially be a match. It’d be cool if someone else could do it.”
Meet Rhyder
Native Hawaiian
Searching patient
Rhyder was born with a rare disease called hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH). He takes daily medication and has an infusion every eight weeks to manage his disease. However, he needs a blood stem cell transplant to have a chance at curing his HLH.
Meet Rushi
South Asian
Transplant recipient
Diagnosed with beta-thalassemia major before birth, Rushi’s journey from searching patient to transplant was long and difficult. In 2021, Rushi and his family were ecstatic when after 10 years of searching, they found a matching donor—Ketan.
Get Involved
Give a gift
Fundraise or give a gift to help patients with uninsured costs, fund life-saving research and add donors to the registry.
Take action
Advocate to protect access and expand coverage for patients needing a blood stem cell transplant.
