You could be someone’s cure
Be The Match® can’t predict what your individual chance of donating to a patient might be. But it’s important to remember that you could be the only person who could save someone’s life. Every registry member is important to patients in need of a marrow transplant.
Donation statistics
- 1 in 40 registry members will be called for additional testing. Additional testing can be used to narrow the list of potential donors and determine the best possible match for a patient.
- 1 in 300 will be selected as the best possible donor for a patient. These potential donors will have an information session with their donor center representative to learn more about the donation process. Due to changes in the patient's condition, not all donors who are selected as the best match will donate.
- About 1 in 430 members will actually donate.
Two important factors in matching marrow donors to patients: Age and ancestry
Ancestry:
Your HLA—your tissue typing—is inherited from your ancestry. This is why patients are most likely to match someone of the same ethnic ancestry. Adding more members who increase the ethnic diversity of the registry increases the variety of tissue types available, helping more patients find the match they need.
Age:
Registry members are listed on Be The Match Registry until their 61st birthday. However, doctors request donors in the 18 to 44 age group more than 86% of the time. Research shows that younger donors provide the greatest chance for transplant success.