SFA to hold bone marrow registry drive tomorrow for graduate student

SFA, in coordination with Be The Match Registry and Because I Care, will host a bone marrow registry drive tomorrow in the Spirit Lounge of the BPSC from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The idea to organize the drive came when SFA graduate student Nate Hawkins was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia, a cancer that causes the body to increase production of white blood cells that normally help fight infection. Hawkins' wife, Melissa, contacted Jamie Bouldin, assistant director for student life and manager of the SFA volunteer program, about organizing a bone marrow registration drive.

The registry is free, fast and painless. All that is needed is some paperwork and a cheek swab. To join, the volunteer must be between the ages of 18 and 60, be willing to donate to any patient in need and meet the health guidelines, according to the flier and Web site, www.marrow.org.

Typically, the best chance for a patient in need of a bone marrow donor is to look within their family, especially siblings, but 70 percent of those patients do not find matches, said Anita Quinn, coordinator of Because I Care.

"You could potentially save someone's life. There are thousands of people everyday who are accessing the registry looking for a donor who can give them lifesaving blood product," Quinn said. "Each of those people needs someone to match them. Obviously the more people we have on the registry, the better chance they have of finding a perfect match."

A volunteer only has to sign up for the program once and will remain on the registry until they are 61, but they may always take themselves off if they wish.

"It definitely isn't something students should take lightly," Bouldin said. "These are life-or-death situations. The students could definitely be lifesaving, but if you think you're not going to want to go through with it, I'd advise you not to register. If you're curious, I know volunteers (working the drive) will be more than happy to discuss it with you. It's better to come by and talk than say you're not interested for no reason at all."

If a volunteer is selected as a possible donor, he or she will be contacted and must first attend an information session. He then must undergo blood tests to confirm if he is in fact the best possible match for the patient and pass a physical exam to ensure donation is safe for donor and recipient. The volunteer may be asked for one of two donations: bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) donation, which requires a procedure similar to donating plasma.

"They are both blood products that help these patients," Quinn said. "Everything to do with the procedure is paid for by the patient and/or their insurance. There is no cost to donor. We happily take donations if anyone wants to make one, but it's not required."

The transplants are confidential, although donor and recipient may meet after one year if they wish, according to Quinn. "College students make great recruits because they're young and don't have the disease a lot of older people can get," she said.

A similar drive was held last year and was considered successful. "We are such a service oriented campus. Our students genuinely want to help," Bouldin said. For more information about the drive or bone marrow donation, visit www.bethematch.org.