by Cindy Lewis
Daily Lobo
UNM students lined up for the opportunity to save possible future lives Wednesday at the Student Health Center.
The National Marrow Donor Program conducted a marrow donation registration drive to test volunteers' blood to determine if they qualify to be bone marrow or stem cell donors.
If they qualify, donors help patients with leukemia and other blood-related diseases that do not have relatives with matching bone marrow types.
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The program reaches out to several community organizations to find potential donors. It started coming to UNM several years ago after a UNM student needed a bone marrow transplant.
Organizers for the event realize that chances of a volunteer's bone marrow type matching an individual's in need of a transplant are slim.
Fae Jones, the coordinator for the National Marrow Donor Program in New Mexico, said that in the past 10 years only 16,000 donations were given to patients nationwide out of the 4.5 million volunteers who are registered.
According to Jones, there is a particular need for blacks, American Indians, Asian/Pacific Islanders and Hispanics to volunteer.
"We push for minorities to sign up because the bone marrow type tends to match that of one's own race," Jones said. "We need everyone, but three-fourths of those registered are Caucasian and only one-fourth are minorities. So it is much more difficult to find the match for a minority patient."
Possible donors are asked to fill out a simple survey on their health history and then receive a prick to their finger to gather a blood sample.
The blood sample is then stored until the donor is 61 years old or until they decide to withdraw from the contract. If a donor comes up as a potential match for a patient, there is additional testing and the individual can decide whether they still want to go through with the process.
Donors go through a surgical procedure where part of their marrow is taken from the back of their pelvic bone using sterile needles and syringes while under anesthesia.
"I think it's important to get your blood tested because if you can find a match, you might save someone's life," said Danielle Thal, a freshman volunteer. "Plus, it doesn't cost anything to help."
The National Marrow Donor Program of New Mexico's goal was to get 100 people to participate in Wednesday's drive. Jones estimated that 60 volunteers came from the UNM community, which she thought was a successful turnout.
Jones said that colleges are a good place to recruit potential donors because of the program's need for diversity and young students who have more time to possibly donate. Students who participated were entered in a gift certificate drawing and received free give-aways.
"A lot of the time it's a person's last chance of survival to get a bone marrow transplant," said Mirielle Begay, a staff member for the National Marrow Donor Program. "Unless they're a doctor, a lot of people don't have the opportunity to save lives. This is one way. It's rewarding."
For more information about how to be a potential donor, call the United Blood Services at 843-6227 or visit the NMDP Web site at www.marrow.org.
