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Why it's done
By Mayo Clinic staffEvery year, more than 10,000 people in the U.S. are diagnosed with life-threatening diseases, such as leukemia or lymphoma, for which a stem cell transplant is the best or the only treatment. Donated blood stem cells are needed for these transplantations.
You might be considering donating blood or bone marrow because someone in your family needs a stem cell transplant and doctors think you might be a match for that person. Or perhaps you want to help someone else — maybe even someone you don't know — who's waiting for a stem cell transplant.
References
- Bone marrow and peripheral blood stem cell transplant. American Cancer Society. http://www.cancer.org/docroot/ETO/eto_1_3_Bone_Marrow.asp. Accessed March 7, 2011.
- Bone marrow transplantation and peripheral blood stem cell transplantation. National Cancer Institute. http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/Therapy/bone-marrow-transplant. Accessed March 7, 2011.
- Join the registry. National Marrow Donor Program. http://www.marrow.org/JOIN/Join_Now/join_now.html. Accessed March 7, 2011.
- Filgrastim (granulocyte colony stimulating factor; G-CSF). Facts & Comparisons 4.0. http://www.factsandcomparisons.com. Accessed March 7, 2011.
- HLA matching: Finding the best donor or cord blood unit. National Marrow Donor Program. http://www.marrow.org/PATIENT/Donor_Select_Tx_Process/The_Search_Process/HLA_Matching_Finding_the_Best_/index.html#basics. Accessed March 7, 2011.
- Myths and facts about bone barrow donation. National Marrow Donor Program. http://www.marrow.org/JOIN/Myths_%26_Facts_about_Marrow_Don/index.html. Accessed March 23, 2011.
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