BONE Marrow registry

Each year, there are about 20,000 american citizens who are diagnosed with some types of lethal diseases that require an immediate bone marrow transplant. The following diseases are ones that have destroyed the bone marrow in one’s body completely: leukemia, aplastic anemia, and sickle cell anemia. Now you might ask what is bone marrow and why is it so very important to the human body. The answer is quite simple: bone marrow is the fatty substance found inside the bone; its purpose is to control the synthesis of stem cells which in return create red blood cells, that travel to the rest of the body. Some symptoms of any bone marrow related disease include greater risks of infections, fractures in bones, and also bone pain. Bone pain often is an effect of the bone marrow inside the bone being infected and destroyed. This is what is called Osteoporosis, which is basically the weakening of the bone. Therefore, with this information in mind, one might see how losing their bone marrow can be problematic. Currently, there are over 3 million American citizens registered for this. However, as much as it may seem, it is not enough. The reason for this is because ethnically diverse people have a harder time finding a match. In fact, last year, only about 30% were able to find a successful match, while the other 70% are still waiting to be donated to. 

Many people in America are reluctant to donate bone marrow because of the following reasons: it will weaken your bones and your immune system. These myths turn out to be false, however. In fact, during the bone marrow transplant, only 1-5% of your bone marrow (which can be replenished by your body) is needed to save another person’s life, so your immune system can stay strong and keep you healthy.