Bone marrow testing drive to take place at Memorial Union Building next Tuesday

“You could be the one to save a life.” That is the quote for the Bone Marrow Testing Drive happening Tuesday, Oct. 7 at the Memorial Union Building, Ballroom A from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. This event is organized by the Michigan Community Blood Centers, a non-profit organization that provides 100 percent of regular blood supply to four regions in Michigan. Besides running blood drives, the organization also provides special services, and the marrow/stem cell program is one of them. In this program, prospective bone marrow donors register with the organization and they help find matches for patients. Bone marrow is a soft fatty tissue found inside of the body’s bones that functions to produce all of the different cells that make up the blood, such as red blood cells and white blood cells. For most bone marrow disorders such as leukemia, lymphoma and other life-threatening diseases, the patient can be treated by a bone marrow transplant. For many, a transplant may be the best and the only hope of a cure. To have a successful transplant, the tissue type of a bone marrow donor needs to match the patient’s as closely as possible. Factors including race, ethnicity and relationship to the patient are taken into consideration when finding a match. If you’ve never had the courage to donate blood because you can’t stand needles, then this might be the best next thing to do your part for humanity. The testing is easy and painless. A swab will be used to collect a DNA sample from inside the cheek. I am sure some of you out there have even done this in high school biology classes. Other things you should consider before going for the testing would be that you are in good health and are between the ages of 18 and 60. Registering as a bone marrow donor is also a big commitment that should be thought of thoroughly. For more information to register as a bone marrow donor, visit miblood.org and be sure to stop by the testing drive if you would like to receive more information before taking the next step.