In hopes of finding a bone marrow match for people in need throughout the world.

 Tissue typing involves DNA analysis of six HLA antigens.

 Healthy, eligible blood donors who are not excessively overweight are encouraged to enroll donate a small blood sample for HLA typing.

 Any one person has a 1 in 20,000 chance of matching a stranger; hence, you are giving someone a Chance of a Lifetime.

 If a person is selected as a candidate, further tests and examinations will be conducted before s/he is asked to donate marrow.

 About 1000 ML of marrow (five percent of total) is extracted from the hip which replenishes itself within two weeks.

 After an overnight stay at the hospital, donors usually return to normal activities in a week, with soreness as the most common side effect.

 Most donors express willingness to donate again in the future.

 Currently, there is an urgent need for minority donors including African American, Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic/Latino, American Indian/Alaska Native. Of the 3.5 million registered donors, Asian/Pacific Islander make up 12.2 percent; African American, 8.3 percent; Native American, 3.8 percent; Hispanic, 2.6 percent; and multiracial, 2.5 percent.

 All in all, what does this mean? If you belong to the minorities mentioned, it is extremely important that you get tested. 3000 people search the registry every day in search for the life-saving donor, you could be it.

Not as Scary as Everyone Thinks

Q. If I was typed before, should I get typed again?

A. No. You are already in the national registry and do not ever need to register again. If any of your contact information has changed, though, we do ask you to stop by the drive to update it

Q. Why is the drive geared towards only Minorities?

A. Go to http://web.mit.edu/marrow/www/minority.html

Q. Does testing hurt and what is the procedure?

A. Testing is as painless as giving blood, and only take 3-4 minutes.

Q. What are the chances of me matching a patient?

A. The odds vary widely, depending on the rarity of the patients tissue type. A sibling is the best possibility - and they only have a 30% chance of matching. This means you may never be called even as a preliminary match.

Q. If I'm a match for someone, can I say no?

A. You may say "no" at any step in the process. Everything is confidential and anonymous. Keep in mind, being on the registry is a serious matter and does take thought and commitment because it gives patients awaiting donors a false hope. If you are unsure about being a bone marrow donor ask how else you might help.

Q. What happens if I am a match for someone, and who pays for it?

A. If you are called as a match, the patient's insurance pays for the procedure - there is no cost to you. The process requires a short hospital stay. All donors receive general anesthesia, marrow is removed from the rear of the pelvic bone using a special syringe. You might feel some tenderness in the area for a day or so.

Q. Are there any health risks to me?

A. The only risk are those generally associated with going under anesthesia.

Q. Do the patient and donor ever meet?

A. Marrow donation is done anonymously. For the first year after the transplant, the donor and recipient may communicate anonymously through the National Marrow Donor Program. If both patient and donor wish to meet after a year it can be arranged.

Q. Who can be tested?

A. Donors must: be between the ages of 18 and 59, in good general health, weigh at least 100lbs, free of chronic diseases, at low risk to general anesthesia, not excessively overweight and have no tattos obtained in the last year. The more people added to the registry, the greater the hope a match for someone in need will be found.

Email contactmarrow@mit.edu for more information.