SIBU: A blood stem cell donor drive will be held on December 14 and 15 from 2pm to 5pm daily at Rejang Medical Centre.
The event, organised by the Sarawak Children’s Cancer Society in collaboration with Sibu Cancer Care Society and Rejang Medical Centre, aims to find matching donors for patients who are suffering from blood-related diseases in Malaysia, especially in the state.
An educational talk on stem cell donation by medical doctors would also be held on December 13 at 7pm at Level 7 & 8, Wisma Hua Wen Du Zhong. The talk would be presented in both English and Mandarin.
“The society hosted four donor drives this year, with a total of 195 sign-ups. We are working with the Malaysian Stem Cell Registry (MSCR) Institute for Medical Research to increase the number of donors in Sarawak as part of the society’s mission to provide care and support for young cancer patients,” said the society’s spokesman.
He added that the increasing number of patients suffering from blood-related diseases (such as leukaemia, aplastic anaemia, lymphoma, etc.) each year has resulted in greater need for blood stem cells transplantation for the treatments.
Blood stem cells are the main blood cells responsible for producing other blood components such as red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets. The blood stem cells transplantation from healthy individuals to patients suffering from blood-related diseases can help the latter to recover and regain their health.
However, to proceed further with the blood stem cell transplantation, the donor’s blood stem cell should have compatible Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) with the patient.
The HLA compatibility between donor and patient is influenced by genetic factors. Only 30 per cent of patients have compatible HLA with their siblings, making them eligible for blood stem cell transplantation. The remaining 70 per cent need to find matching HLA from unrelated donor in blood stem cells volunteer database such as MSCR’s or other databases and registries abroad.
Once a match is found, the donation of blood stem cell would be carried out via the peripheral blood vessel (apheresis method). Blood is taken from the donor with a machine that separates the stem cells from the blood for transplant, whereas the remaining blood component is then re-infused to the donor.
Individuals who want to volunteer as a blood stem cell donor should be a healthy Malaysian citizen aged between 18 and 50, and free from any chronic diseases.
To date, there are 33,450 registered volunteers in MSCR and only 1,500 are Sarawakians.
“Due to racial diversity and intermarriage among Malaysians, the probability of finding a matching donor for a patient is very low, especially for patients from Sarawak. Sarawakian volunteers only account for four percent of the current number of volunteers.”
He added that should a donor be a match for a patient, they will be contacted by MSCR to confirm the donation.
“The donor will undergo further briefing and counselling as well as physical examination. If the donor is not living in Kuala Lumpur, the donor will be flown there. All expenses including air fares, meal allowance and accommodation are borne by MSCR.
“When the donor arrives at the hospital (either Ampang Hospital or Kuala Lumpur Hospital), the donor will be given GSCF hormone via injection for three days before stem cell collection. A maximum total of five days is required to complete the process.”
For more information, contact Sarawak Children’s Cancer Society at 082-686276 or email events@sccs.org.my. Members of the public can also register as a member of MSCR by contacting the officer in charge at 03-26162790/2780 or email mscr@imr.gov.my.
