Causecast

As the Southwest Florida Outreach Center for the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP), Florida Blood Services (FBS) realizes that for thousands of people with leukemia, lymphoma and other life-threatening diseases, a marrow or peripheral blood stem cell transplant offers a second chance at life. Every day, more than 6,000 patients search the NMDP Registry for a lifesaving donor. Seventy percent of patients will not find a match within their family, and only 3 in 10 patients receive the transplant that could save their lives. Increasing the number of diverse donors on the Registry is critical because patients have the best chance of finding a match within their own race.

In honor of all donors who support the needs of patients requiring transfusions, the FBS Foundation will cover the NMDP registration costs (normally $52) for all donors that give whole blood, red cells, platelets or plasma during November. In recognition of the urgency to increase the diversity of the Registry Pat Pedraja, a 13 year old Tampa Bay leukemia patient who was a 2007 CNN Heroes Award winner, started Driving for Donors and has teamed up with FBS to help promote this campaign. Anyone between the ages of 18 and 60, in good health and willing to help any patient in need is eligible to join the NMDP Registry. Simple swabs from inside the mouth to collect DNA samples for tissue typing is all that is required along with registration paperwork.

Prospective NMDP registrants can donate at any FBS bloodmobile or Donor Center to become eligible to join for FREE. Bloodmobile donors will receive a voucher that they can then redeem at any FBS Donor Center where the registration packets will be located. Donors who give at any FBS Donor Center can enroll at the same time.

Additional mobile blood drive locations and hours can be found by calling 1-800-68-BLOOD (25663) or on the web at fbsblood.org

For those unable to donate blood, contributions may be mailed to Florida Blood Services Foundation, 10100 Dr. Martin Luther King Street N, St. Petersburg, FL 33716, or submitted on-line at bloodrelief.org.

Because tissue types are inherited, patients are more likely to match someone from their own race or ethnicity. Adding more donors from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds to the NMDP Registry increases the likelihood that all patients will find the match they need. Your heritage can make all the difference. If you are from one of the following communities, you are urgently needed as a bone marrow or peripheral stem cell donor: Black and African American, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian and other Pacific Islander, Hispanic and Latino, Multiple race.