World Bone Marrow Donor Day: 63% of men say they are ready to donate bone marrow, even though they are under-represented among registered donors - Press release
Published on 10 September 2024
Saturday September 21 marks the 10th World Marrow Donor Day, an opportunity for the Agence de la biomédecine to highlight the urgent need to recruit new donors in France. Every year, 20,000 new "Veilleurs de vie"[1] must join the national registry to meet the needs of patients in France and abroad. However, this target is far from being met as we enter the new school year in 2024.
According to a study[2] conducted by the Agence de la biomédecine, awareness of this donation is good, and young men - who represent the most sought-after profiles - say they are well informed, concerned and ready to register. But the transformation of intentions into registrations remains disappointing, and we need to maintain a high level of information.
For this new World Donor Day, the Agence de la biomédecine is inviting all French people, and particularly young men, to find out more about donation, and to tell their friends and family about it, so as to contribute to the French donor base on which thousands of patients in France and around the world depend for their hope of recovery.
Young men are the most sought-after profiles for the French register
According to the study, 45% of men feel well informed about bone marrow donation, and even better, 55% say they are concerned by it. In fact, 63% said they would be willing to donate bone marrow. These are encouraging figures for doctors, who are looking for these profiles to join the French registry. **The national registry of voluntary bone marrow donors includes only 35% men, despite the fact that over 70% of cells transplanted each year come from male donors.**In fact, a transplant using cells from a male donor increases the patient's chances of a successful transplant. What's more, 64% of the men surveyed were aware that they were among the most sought-after profiles.
Awareness, yes, but little action
Despite the growing popularity of bone marrow donation, men are taking the plunge only timidly. The reason? Questions and preconceived ideas about the donation process: registration on a registry, non-immediate donation, collection methods - these are all still vague criteria that can slow men down in their decision-making. For example, 43% of men surveyed believe that registration on a registry is a precondition for immediate donation. Hence the absolute necessity of continuing to educate people about the principles of bone marrow donation.
Continue to raise awareness of the terms and purpose of donation
For many patients, bone marrow donation is the ultimate hope of recovery. To help thousands of patients, the Agence de la biomédecine needs to recruit new donors to help save their lives.
Donation is based on compatibility between donor and recipient, which is why the French registry needs to be enriched qualitatively with a variety of profiles. Each individual has his or her own genetic profile, and there needs to be as close a match as possible between the donor's cells and those of the transplant recipient, if the transplant is to be as effective as possible.
Bone marrow is nothing like spinal cord! In the vast majority of cases, blood samples are taken on an outpatient basis. Yet only 42% of those surveyed, and 1 in 2 men, are aware of this, and 58% of those questioned believe that the procedure always requires hospitalization.
The French donor registry gives priority to specific profiles: men and young people. Donors must be aged between 18 and 35 at the time of registration. Transplants taken from young people are richer in stem cells, and therefore ideal for faster graft take-up by patients. This age limit is known by 37% of those surveyed, and 46% of men.
Understanding bone marrow donation
What is bone marrow?
Bone marrow is a substance found in all our bones, responsible for the formation of our blood cells: red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. Bone marrow is therefore essential to life, and its dysfunction is the cause of serious blood diseases such as leukemia.
Who needs a bone marrow transplant?
People who suffer from bone marrow dysfunction, leading to serious blood diseases such as leukemia. Bone marrow transplants are sometimes the last hope of recovery for these patients. Bone marrow donation is completely anonymous: you can't decide to whom you give your cells.
How do you donate bone marrow?
In 80% of cases, the donation is made by blood sampling: equivalent to a platelet donation, it lasts between 3 and 4 hours, and the donor can perfectly well keep busy by watching a series, listening to music or reading a book. The other way of collecting blood is directly from the pelvic bones, under anaesthetic. In both cases, there is no risk of paralysis.
The median time between registration and donation is 8 years, and some donors will never be called because they have never been identified as compatible with a patient.
Why do we give priority to men?
This is due to immunological factors: the antibodies naturally developed by women during pregnancy (even if the pregnancy is not carried to term) make transplantation more difficult for the recipient. As men lack these antibodies, their cells increase the chances of a successful transplant.
Of course, women can also be donors. But given these immunological factors, the preferred profiles are young women.
What are the conditions for becoming a donor?
- Be in perfect health
- Be between the ages of 18 and 35
- Go to www.dondemoelleosseuse.fr, complete a medical questionnaire and take a biological sample (saliva sample or blood test upon final registration), which will determine the future donor's biological identity card.
[1]
"Veilleurs de vie" are voluntary donors registered on the national registry and ready to donate their bone marrow to save patients suffering from serious blood diseases such as leukemia.
[2]
Source: study carried out by Viavoice for the Agence de la biomédecine from March 22 to 27, 2024 on a panel of 600 people in mainland France.