Stem cell donors needed

THE SUNFLOWER Fund has appealed to the public to register as stem cell donors through a public donor drive at the Century City Hotel and Conference Centre today.

Since the first bone marrow transplant in the 1950s, over a million patients have received a transplant of blood stem cells for the treatment of a wide variety of blood cancers and other diseases.

Often, transplantation using healthy cells from a donor may be the only chance of a cure. When there is no suitable donor within the family, an unrelated donor may be the best match for the patient.

The Sunflower Fund is the premier organisation in southern Africa that actively recruits stem cell donors, creates awareness about the need for and the process involved in being a stem cell donor and raises funds for the tissue-typing cost of R3 000 per individual to register as a donor.

From 9am to 3pm today, the public can register as donors and have a free wellness test for glucose, blood pressure and cholesterol.

Sunflower Fund chief executive Alana James said South Africa had an urgent need for an ethnically diverse registry of donors committed to helping anyone in need of a lifesaving stem cell transplant.

“The entire process takes less than 10 minutes and we are introducing a new method of recruitment that doesn’t involve needles.

“It is important for us to recruit donors that are in general good health and it is therefore fitting to partner and offer free wellness tests in tandem with registering donors.”

Merchandise will be on sale on the day and you can visit www. sunflowerfund.org.za to make a quick and easy cash donation. For more information or to register contact the Sunflower Fund on tollfree number 080 012 1082.