Delta College’s Beta Tau Chapter of Alpha Delta Nu Nursing Honor Society and Delta College Student Nurses Association will be hosting a Bone Marrow Drive for individuals 18 - 44 years old.

Be the match - save a life!

The National Marrow Donor Program’s Be The Match Registry®connects patients in need with life-saving marrow donors. For critically ill patients with leukemia, lymphoma, sickle cell anemia or other blood diseases, a marrow transplant is their only cure. Since most patients do not find a marrow match within their family, 70% of those in need rely on the Be The Match Registry.  

Every week, Be The Match adds approximately 9,000 new potential donors to the registry, utilizing the highest resolution tissue-typing technology currently available. Registry members become part of every patient’s search for a matching marrow donor. Patients especially need committed registry members ages 18 to 44. Doctors request donors in this in this age range more than 90% of the time because younger donors provide the best chance for transplant success.

The Bone Marrow Registry Drive will occur at the following sites from 10a-5pm.

• Monday, April 3 - Delta College Main Campus, 1961 Delta Rd, University Center
• Tuesday, April 4 - Delta College Midland Center, 1025 E. Wheeler St, Midland
• Wednesday, April 5 - Delta College Planetarium & Learning Center, 100 Center Ave, Bay City
• Thursday, April 6 - Delta College Ricker Center, 1925 S. Outer Dr., Saginaw

What is Be The Match? Be The Match is a nonprofit organization and operated by the National Marrow Donor Program here in the United States. 70% of the time, a patient who needs a transplant cannot find a match within their own family. When that is the case, their doctor search the Be The Match Registry data base for an unrelated donor match. 

Can I sign up for the registry? Yes you can, as long as you’re at least 18 years old. It takes about seven minutes to join. To join at live drives, you must be between the age of 18 to 44 and those between the ages of 45 to 60 must join online, and a $100 tax-deductible fee is required for the process.

Why would someone donate his or her marrow? Donors are needed so that they can willingly donate their marrow to any patient with a blood disease, like leukemia, lymphoma, or sickle cell anemia. Without anonymous donors, 70% of the people who cannot find a match in their own family would likely die or suffer from debilitating conditions for a very long time! People donate marrow to save lives.

Doesn’t donating marrow hurt? Actually, 80% of the time, the material needed for a transplant can be taken right out of your blood stream – similar to donating plasma. The other way is an outpatient procedure, and you are asleep for the entire time. Some people compare the pain they feel after donating to how they feel after a tough workout at the gym. After either of the procedures, the donor is back to full capacity after a few days at the most.

Does it cost money to register? No cost to you to registry, Be The Match pays $100 dollars to process donors into the registry! If you are between the ages of 45 – 60, when you join online a $100 tax deductible is required to process you into the Registry. Be The Match, is a 501 (c) 103 non-profit organization and we do rely on generous contribution from the general public. All funds contributed is tax-deductible. 

How long will I be on the registry? You will be on the registry until you are 61 years old. At that time, they will deactivate your status.

Are you going take my marrow today? No. If you choose to sign up, you will fill out some information that tells Be The Match about your contact information, as well as a little bit about your genetic history, and then you will swab the inside of your cheeks with cotton swabs. It’s completely painless.

Why do you allow only allow potential donors between the ages 18 to 44 to join at lives drives? Due to research, doctors have found that donors between the ages of 18 to 44 have provided the best transplant success rate and outcome for patients.

For more information
Daisy McQuiston MS, RN, CNE
Associate Professor of Nursing
daisymcquiston@delta.edu
989-686-9019