Six things that don’t stop you from becoming a bone marrow donor

Sometimes there can be confusion about which rules apply when registering as a potential blood stem cell donor. Here are six misconceptions about factors that people often wrongly believe would prevent them from becoming a potential blood stem cell/bone marrow donor…

6. “I’m in a same-sex relationship” 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍🌈

Sexual orientation does not make people ineligible to register as a potential bone marrow donor and is not part of our eligibility criteria.

5. “I’m 30+”

We register people who are ages 18–55 and in good general health. People stay on the national bone marrow registry until they turn 61!

4. “I’m pregnant”

We recommend that you sign up after you have finished breastfeeding. If you are already registered, you can contact us and we will put a block on your until six months after you have given birth.

3. “I have a cold/the flu”

Suffering from a cold or flu doesn’t affect your cheek swab sample, so you can still register during this time.

2. “I don’t know my blood type”⁉️

Despite some similarities, bone marrow donation is different to donating blood. Bone marrow matches are determined by a person’s human leukocyte antigen (HLA) tissue type, not by blood types. Bone marrow donors donate only stem cells, rather than blood. Swabbing is the test used to see if you are a matching bone marrow donor for any patient in need. We send you a cheek swab kit, you swab your cheeks and sent it back to us. Once we receive it, it goes to the lab for processing and then you are added to the National Bone Marrow Registry.

Lexi is inked up however she was able to donate her bone marrow to a cancer patient in need.

1. “I’ve got piercings and/or tattoos”

Tattoos & piercings shouldn’t be an issue. If you’re called to be a donor, you will be carefully evaluated for possible signs/symptoms of infection. If you are identified as a match for someone and you got a piercing or a tattoo within the last four months, you’d need to let our team know.

Were any of these a surprise to you? There are lots of questions that people have before registering as a potential bone marrow donor, and about the donation process too. If you have any other questions then check out our FAQs page or email info@dkms.org and we’ll clarify whether you’re eligible to join the registry.

Or, if you can’t register or have already done it, there are lots of other ways people can support the fight against blood cancer, why not get involved or help us cover donor registration costs!

Originally published at www.dkms.org.uk on February 28, 2018.