AMARILLO, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) — For Giving Tuesday, officials with the Texas Tech Health Sciences Center (TTUHSC) along with the Texas Tech Physicians Pediatrics and the Northwest Texas Healthcare System, are encouraging individuals to join the Be The Match organization during its donor registry drive.
According to a news release, the entities will partner with Be The Match for a donor registry drive from 12 to 6 p.m. Tuesday to increase awareness for bone marrow donors. People between the ages of 18 and 40 who want to be added to the Be The Match registry can participate in the drive at the Texas Tech Physicians location at 1400 S. Coulter. Possible donors will receive a cheek swab that is used to add a donor’s genetic type to the registry.
“Chemotherapy can cure a majority of the cancers, but sometimes, in certain cancers, the cancer cells outsmart the chemo and patients relapse,” Smita Bhaskaran, an assistant professor at the Texas Tech Physicians Pediatrics Hematology-Oncology, said in the release. “In such situations, obtaining a new, robust marrow from a healthy individual becomes the only curative option for the patient.”
According to the release, potential Be The Match donors are asked to keep their contact information up-to-date so if a possible match is made. Donors are listed on the registry until they’re 61 unless they request to be removed from future searches. One in 220 U.S. registry members will go on to donate.