welcom
10-14-2005, 01:00 PM
Dear Everybody,
Do you know that there is an urgent need for bone marrow donations for minorities in the US, especially Asian and mixed race Americans?
I intern for a California Assemblymember here in Sacramento, CA and our office recently received an email from Matt Sasaki, a 15-year-old Caucasian-Japanese American who has leukemia and needs bone marrow. Unlike blood, bone marrow is harder to match with the right person. Because none of his relatives has matching marrow, he is reaching out to the Asian American community in the Sacramento area and beyond.
Currently, only 2.2% of marrow donors in the US are mixed race. Native Americans/Alaskan Natives represent only 1.2% of donors, and those of Asian descent represent 6.4%.* (http://www.bloodsource.org/AboutUs/ServicesPrograms/NationalMarrowDonorRegistry.cfm) If you would like to donate, the first step would be to register with the National Marrow Donor Program (http://www.marrow.org). (An overview of the process is at http://www.aadp.org/become_a_donor.html, or at http://www.marrow.org/DONOR/steps_of_donation.html.)
After registering, a blood sample is taken to determine tissue type. This information is added to the registry. “If you match the tissue type of a patient seeking a donor, additional testing will confirm the results. You will meet with Marrow Donor Counselors at BloodSource who will help you make your informed decision about donating marrow/blood stem cells. Depending on the needs of the patient, you may be asked to give either marrow or Peripheral Blood Stem Cells (PBSC).”* (http://www.bloodsource.org/AboutUs/ServicesPrograms/NationalMarrowDonorRegistry.cfm)
BloodSource (http://www.bloodsource.org) is an organization in California that takes donations. Matt Sasaki’s site (http://www.marrowformatt.com) will inform you of his dire situation. I also recommend visiting the Asian American Donor Program website (http://www.aadp.org).
Thank you for your time.
Welcom Ang
Do you know that there is an urgent need for bone marrow donations for minorities in the US, especially Asian and mixed race Americans?
I intern for a California Assemblymember here in Sacramento, CA and our office recently received an email from Matt Sasaki, a 15-year-old Caucasian-Japanese American who has leukemia and needs bone marrow. Unlike blood, bone marrow is harder to match with the right person. Because none of his relatives has matching marrow, he is reaching out to the Asian American community in the Sacramento area and beyond.
Currently, only 2.2% of marrow donors in the US are mixed race. Native Americans/Alaskan Natives represent only 1.2% of donors, and those of Asian descent represent 6.4%.* (http://www.bloodsource.org/AboutUs/ServicesPrograms/NationalMarrowDonorRegistry.cfm) If you would like to donate, the first step would be to register with the National Marrow Donor Program (http://www.marrow.org). (An overview of the process is at http://www.aadp.org/become_a_donor.html, or at http://www.marrow.org/DONOR/steps_of_donation.html.)
After registering, a blood sample is taken to determine tissue type. This information is added to the registry. “If you match the tissue type of a patient seeking a donor, additional testing will confirm the results. You will meet with Marrow Donor Counselors at BloodSource who will help you make your informed decision about donating marrow/blood stem cells. Depending on the needs of the patient, you may be asked to give either marrow or Peripheral Blood Stem Cells (PBSC).”* (http://www.bloodsource.org/AboutUs/ServicesPrograms/NationalMarrowDonorRegistry.cfm)
BloodSource (http://www.bloodsource.org) is an organization in California that takes donations. Matt Sasaki’s site (http://www.marrowformatt.com) will inform you of his dire situation. I also recommend visiting the Asian American Donor Program website (http://www.aadp.org).
Thank you for your time.
Welcom Ang