1. What is MatchMaker?
2. What is Marrow-thon?
3. Why should my organization consider participating in marrow-thon?
4. What is the NMDP?
5. How do I register?
6. How is MatchMaker affiliated with Help Nicole?
7. How much does it cost to become a donor? Why are there tissue-typing fees for Caucasians?
8. Why is it so important to have more multiracial donors? Can someone only find a match with someone of the same background?
9. What is the process for registering as a potential donor?
10. What is the actual process for donating?
11. How can I get involved?
12. Are gay men restricted from becoming registered donors?
13. Is there an age requirement to become a registered donor?
14. Is there a weight requirement to become a registered donor?
15. What is cord blood donation?

What is MatchMaker?

Created in 2001 by MAVIN interns Yasmine Tarhouni and Justine Neiman, the MatchMaker Bone Marrow Project is the only national program dedicated to mixed race marrow donor recruitment and education. The MatchMaker program was created to increase awareness about the chronic shortage of multiracial donors, a pressing issue directly affecting members of the mixed race community. Through educational outreach and hosting bone marrow drives, (over 100 to date) MatchMaker is increasing the racial and ethnic diversity in the pool of potential donors and raising awareness about multiracial health issues. Additionally, MatchMaker was the recipient of the Washington Health Foundation's "Heroes of Health Care." Award for Innovation. In November 2003, MatchMaker was the runner-up for The Peter F. Drucker Award for Nonprofit Innovation, given annually in recognition of programs that have made a difference in the lives of people they serve.

To read more about MatchMaker, visit the MatchMaker homepage.

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What is Marrow-thon?

The National Campus Marrow-thon is MatchMaker's exciting recruitment program to register college students as marrow donors. College campuses offer a highly diverse and receptive population. MAVIN has worked closely with over 30 different mixed race and student of color organizations and community groups across the nation to host bone marrow drives during Marrow-thons in March and November of 2002. During the first marrow-thon, 62% of those registered identified as mixed race! The coordinated drives for marrow-thon 2, in November marked MAVIN Foundation's second national effort to register mixed race Americans to become marrow or blood stem cell donors for transplant patients suffering from blood diseases like leukemia. In 2002, over 2,000 new donors were registered, 41% of which identified as mixed race! To date, 21 potential matches have been registered through our efforts.

To read more about Marrow-thon, visit the Marrow-thon homepage!

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Why should my organization consider participating in marrow-thon?

Marrow-thon is a unique opportunity for your organization to use marrow drives to register more donors while making your organization stronger and more cohesive. Holding an event like marrow-thon every year has the advantage of giving your group's name a higher profile. The NMDP advises, and we have seen, that turnout increases every year! And as you know, the bigger the event, the more members and publicity it draws to your organization! Marrow-thon also offers your organization the opportunity to take direct action on an issue directly affecting mixed race individuals.

An innovative reason why MatchMaker is especially effective is because we work directly with mixed race and student of color organizations on college campuses. We provide them with recruitment materials, logistical support, connect them with blood centers and recruitment organizations and the chance to participate in an exciting national project. They, in turn, provide direct outreach on their campuses. The result is high success rates and the registration of more people of color.

Read more about what goes in planning your drive

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What is the NMDP?

MatchMaker leverages the resources of existing organizations by working with local blood centers and National Marrow Donor Program Registry® (NMDP) recruitment groups. The NMDP is the international leader in the facilitation of unrelated marrow and blood stem cell transplantation. A non-profit organization based in Minneapolis, Minn, the NMDP facilitates transplants for patients with life-threatening diseases who do not have matching donors in their families. The NMDP offers a single point of access for all sources of stem cells used in transplantation: marrow, peripheral blood and umbilical cord blood. Through an extensive network of national and international affiliates, the NMDP currently facilitates more than 160 transplants each month.

Although we worked with local blood centers and NMDP recruitment groups during our 1st Marrow-thon, in November 2002, we initiated a direct outreach effort with NMDP recruitment groups like Asian American Donor Program (AADP) and Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches (A3M). Our collaborative efforts significantly increased their outreach into the mixed race community. MAVIN foundation's MatchMaker Program works closely with the NMDP. All potential donors registered through MatchMaker will be registered with through the NMDP Registry®.

To read more about the NMDP, visit their website at www.marrow.org

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How do I register?

A person of any race, ethnicity or gender who is 18 to 60 years old and in general good health can become a volunteer potential marrow or blood stem cell donor. But before making the decision to join, make sure that you have taken the time to educate yourself about the decision to join.

Next you can contact an NMDP Donor Center or Recruitment group

Read more about joining the registry here and here.

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How is MatchMaker affiliated with Help Nicole?

Help Nicole is volunteer organization committed to finding 6-year-old Nicole Howard, a multiracial girl suffering from Leukemia, a bone marrow match by increasing the number of registered people of all racial and ethnic backgrounds on the NMDP Registry®. Help Nicole first came in contact with MAVIN after doctors told the Howards that they would probably have to register 50,000 mixed race people to find Nicole's match. The Howard's needed help and MAVIN's nation-wide network of multiracial college organizations and members was a natural fit. Since first working together in 2001, MAVIN and Help Nicole have organized over 100 bone marrow drives both locally and across the nation, and have registered nearly 6,000 new donors to the NMDP!

Read more about Help Nicole at www.helpnicole.org

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How much does it cost to become a donor? Why are there tissue-typing fees for Caucasians?

Although multiracial and Asian, Pacific Islander, African-American, Latino and American Indians do not have to pay to register, most blood centers require between $20-$75 for Caucasians to register. According to the NMDP, people of Middle Eastern descent are classified as Caucasian. Because of the under representation of minority groups, (who make up only 25% of the NMDP) more funding has been allotted for their recruitment. Whereas the NMDP covers approximately $180 in testing fees for Caucasians, it covers $200 (the entire amount) for people of color. Nevertheless, Caucasians should still be encouraged to register, and can fill out paperwork to be contacted when funding is available to reduce or waive their registration fee.

Thanks to funding made possible by the Children's Organ Transplant Association (COTA), we were able to offset registration costs for dozens of Caucasian potential donors during past marrow-thons. We hope to expand our ability to cover Caucasian tissue typing fees at our future drives.

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Why is it so important to have more multiracial donors? Can someone only find a match with someone of the same background?

Our concentration and expertise is outreach into mixed race and communities of color. MatchMaker's goal of registering more mixed race people to the National Marrow Donor Registry is critically important. This year, 30,000 people will be diagnosed with diseases that are treatable with a marrow or blood stem cell transplant. People are most likely to find a match with someone of a similar racial or ethnic background. Someone who is mixed race, both African American and Caucasian, for example would most likely match someone of a similar multiracial heritage. It is possible to find a match with someone of a different racial or ethnic background, however these cases are very rare. Because of their unique heritages and since multiracial people represent only 2% of the National Marrow Donor Program Registry, it is extremely difficult for mixed race patients to find a life-saving match. During November's marrow-thon, which recruited over 2,000 new potential donors, 1,837 or 88% (compared to 25% of the NMDP Registry) were racial minorities while 852, or 41% identified as mixed race. Because MatchMaker seeks to diversify the pool of potential donors, all patients, regardless of their heritage are offered a better chance at finding a life-saving match.

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What is the process for registering as a potential donor?

To register as a donor takes only about 15 minutes and about two tablespoons of blood. If you're a match for someone, and decide to follow through with the procedure, you'll undergo a simple surgery to remove marrow that your body will naturally regenerate in a few weeks. The surgery often doesn't even require you to spend the night, and the pain is similar to a heavy workout for about 2 weeks, in most cases.

Registered donors will be on the Registry until their 61st birthday, although most people will only match one person in their lifetime. People who get registered should take the time to become fully educated about both the procedure and responsibility of becoming a registered donor, since you really can save someone's life.

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What is the actual process for donating?

click here for a link to more facts about marrow and stem cell donation.

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How can I get involved?

If you are interested in learning more, would like to volunteer or host a bone marrow drive, please contact Nicki at (206) 622.7101, toll-free at (888) 77.MAVIN or by email at nicki@mavinfoundation.org. The MatchMaker Website can also provide you with several helpful links!

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Are gay men restricted from becoming registered donors?

The FDA Policy to determine if a potential donor may be at risk for HIV (the AIDS virus) or hepatitis disqualifies "any male who had sex with another male, even once, since 1977" from joining the registry. MatchMaker feels this policy is homophobic, but we are forced to follow the FDA guidelines while registering donors. MatchMaker has issued the following petition:

With the intent of continuing our work to increase donorship, we, the undersigned, strongly protest the Food & Drug Administration's (FDA) policy prohibiting all men who have had sex with men since 1977 from becoming blood or marrow donors.

Whereas we acknowledge the critical importance of maintaining a safe blood supply, we reject a national policy that inequitably excludes (i.e. discriminates against) an entire population. We feel that a policy to prohibit potential donors should be based on actual UNSAFE sexual activity regardless of partner. To assume that all men who have sex with men are unfit blood/marrow donors by definition, and that male-female and female-female sexual contact is safe by definition, is inaccurate, homophobic and discriminatory.

We, the undersigned, pledge to publicly identify and critisize bigotry in all its overt and subtle forms. We will continue to monitor this issue and encourage the FDA to amend this bigoted policy immediately so that the national blood/marrow supply is best protected from UNSAFE, not unpopular, human sexual behavior.

If you would like to sign this petition please email nicki@mavinfoundation.org

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Is there an age requirement to become a registered donor?

A person who is 18 to 60 years old and in good health can become a volunteer potential marrow or blood stem cell donor. But before making the decision to join, make sure that you have taken the time to educate yourself about the decision to join.

Next you can contact an NMDP Donor Center or Recruitment group

Read more about joining the registry here and here.

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Is there a weight requirment to become a registered donor?

There is not a minimum weight requirement to register to become a donor. Maximum weight guidelines are followed to minimize risk to the donor.

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What is cord blood donation?

Cord blood is rich in stem cells and can be used for transplantation in place of bone marrow. The immature cells found in cord blood are easier to match between non-related people than bone marrow. Using cord blood, there is also far less chance of the recipient developing negative medical reactions such as Graft versus Host Disease.

For additional information please visit:
• Cryobanks International website www.cryo-intl.com
• A Parent's Guide To Cord Blood Banks www.parentsguidecordblood.com

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