Madrid beat a new record in marrow and umbilical cord donation.

-the annual figure of donor marrow anonymous grows nearly 20% and the donations of cord 72%

– last year the community hospitals conducted 518 marrow transplants

Madrid, March 2012.- the citizens of the community of Madrid have established new historical maximum figures in donations of umbilical cord and marrow donors. Thus last year were recorded as anonymous donor and altruistic 777 new donors, from the 653 of 2010, an increase of almost 20%. The Centre has a database with 11,720 potential donors, pending a request for donation to a compatible receiver.

Also, the cord, underway in 1997, Bank has processed 601 donations in 2011, with 348 processed the previous year, which means an increase of 72 per cent in a single year. Currently the transfusion centre available 6.471 preserved and arranged to transplant umbilical cord units.

These new maximum figures are fruit of the work of the Centre for transfusion professionals and hospitals and, above all, of generosity and awareness citizen of Madrid. These donations can have as a destination for patients who require it in Madrid, the rest of Spain or other countries, at the same time that locals can receive donations from all over the world, in reciprocity.

Vital donations to treat serious diseases

Marrow and umbilical cord donations are essential to obtain hematopoietic parents – stem cells – which are subsequently transplanted. What was previously known as bone marrow transplants.

This therapy is used to treat leukemias, lymphomas, aplasia medular and immunodeficiencies, among other pathologies. Patients who need a transplant hematopoietic parents can do so from their own cells, what is known as autologous transplantation; a relative, the so-called allogeneic related transplant cells; and in cases where it is not possible any of these options, with cells from an anonymous, through a not relational, autologous transplantation donor either from an adult donor or frozen cells from an umbilical cord previously donated. So there is the possibility of this third type of transplant is essential the donation of umbilical cord and/or donor adults and altruistic.

A third of children’s transplants are anonymous donor

Last year hospitals in the community, according to data from the Regional Office of transplants, conducted a total of 518 transplants of hematopoietic parents, of which 95 were unrelated myoblasts. That is, anonymous donor marrow or cord stem cells. These cases are particularly important in children, because one-third of parents children’s hematopoietic transplantation used anonymous donations marrow or umbilical cord, 23 68 made in 2011.

The process of marrow can currently be made through the peripheral blood. This type of donation, much less bloody than the removal of bone marrow, is basically move stem cells from bone marrow, his usual place, peripheral blood and its extraction through a path in the arm, as in the case of regular blood donation. To do so, is passing blood through machines called cell separators, which collect the stem cells and let the rest.

Report to promote the donation

The transfusion of the community of Madrid Centre carries out different activities to inform and encourage the donation of cord and umbilical cord. Currently, within the framework of the blood donation campaign in universities, they are holding information sessions among college students, and offering blood donors the opportunity to register, at the same time, as potential marrow donors. As in all cases of anonymous donors, the possibilities that halle a compatible patient and seek effective donation, it is very low.

In addition, he has edited very complete information materials on the donation of umbilical cord and cord, which have been circulated in the health network and are available here. To register as a marrow donor, as in the case of the donation of blood, there is no special conditions

to inquire or register as donors citizens can go to the transfusion centre, located in Valdebernardo, through the centro.transfusion@salud.madrid.org email address, and/or phone 91 301 72 00 / 58 / 66.