Sage-Tips

Does race matter in bone marrow transplant?

Compared to organ transplants, bone marrow donations need to be even more genetically similar to their recipients. Though there are exceptions, the vast majority of successful matches take place between donors and patients of the same ethnic background.

Does race matter donating stem cells?

If you become ill with a blood cancer or other disease that requires a stem cell transplant, here’s an uncomfortable fact: Your race matters. For a successful transplant, donor and recipient must have nearly identical genes regulating certain immune cells.

What determines if bone marrow transplants are needed?

When the doses of chemotherapy or radiation needed to cure a cancer are so high that a person’s bone marrow stem cells will be permanently damaged or destroyed by the treatment, a bone marrow transplant may be needed. Bone marrow transplants may also be needed if the bone marrow has been destroyed by a disease.

Why is a bone marrow match needed?

The HLA must be as closely matched as possible so that the transplant recipient’s body can ‘accept’ the new stem cells into their bone marrow. Just as important, matching at HLA will decrease the chance of the new marrow reacting against the patient, a reaction called graft versus host disease.

Can a Caucasian donate a kidney to an African American?

Since up to 90 percent of transplant kidneys are from Caucasian-American donors, Caucasian-American recipients are often better matches. But the disparity doesn’t stop there. Even when African-Americans do receive donor kidneys, they have a higher risk than other Americans for early graft rejection.

What does bone marrow transplant involve?

A bone marrow transplant is a medical procedure performed to replace bone marrow that has been damaged or destroyed by disease, infection, or chemotherapy. This procedure involves transplanting blood stem cells, which travel to the bone marrow where they produce new blood cells and promote growth of new marrow.

How does bone marrow transplant help sickle cell anemia?

How Does It Work? A bone marrow transplant replaces the cells in your body that make red blood cells, called hematopoietic stem cells, with new ones. That means your body will stop making the sickle-shaped cells that cause the disease.

Can your child be a bone marrow match?

There is a very small chance, about one percent, that a parent may be closely matched with his or her child and can be used in the same manner as a matched sibling.

Does race matter in organ donation?

Although organs are not matched by race and ethnicity, and people of different races frequently match one another, all individuals waiting for an organ transplant will have a better chance of receiving a transplant if there are large numbers of donors from their racial or ethnic background.

Does race affect kidney transplant?

At 1 year following renal failure, white persons are almost four times more likely to have received a transplant than black persons (22.7 percent and 6.0 percent, respectively). Asian-Americans (15.5 percent) and Native Americans (12.1 percent) also have transplantation rates more than double the rate of black persons.

Do you need a marrow transplant if you’re mixed race?

Devan would need a marrow transplant. The prospect of going through chemotherapy for a second time and needing a transplant is daunting to anyone, but it’s especially harrowing if — like Devan — you’re of mixed race. Multiracial patients often have an incredibly hard time finding life-saving marrow matches.

Is race a biological or social construct?

Race is not biological. It is a social construct. There is no gene or cluster of genes common to all blacks or all whites.

What is the likelihood of finding a matching bone marrow donor?

A patient’s likelihood of finding a matching bone marrow donor or cord blood unit on the Be The Match Registry® ranges from 19\% to 80\% depending on ethnic background. Matching patients with donors.

How many donors are mixed-race?

In the NMDP database, less than 3\% of donors self-identify as mixed race. Though this approximately matches U.S. Census data, more mixed-race donors are needed given the sheer genetic diversity of the group. In both the U.S. and the U.K., people of mixed race are the fastest growing minority, and the population skews young.