Student group assists bone marrow drive

To help identify potential donors, Mississippi State's Black Student Council is sponsoring a bone marrow donor registration drive Nov. 19 at the Colvard Student Union on campus.

The 10 a.m.-6 p.m. event is part of a drive on 20 Southern college and university campuses being conducted for the National Marrow Donor Program through Lifeblood, a regional blood center in Memphis, Tenn., said Veronica Waters, BSC president.

The National Marrow Donor Program, authorized by Congress, matches potential marrow donors in a national data bank with patients in need. It is a collaborative effort of the American Association of Blood Banks and the Council of Community Blood Centers.

"Marrow transplants often are needed for patients with aplastic anemia, some leukemias, lymphomas, and diseases of the immune system," Waters explained.

Those participating in the drive must be between 18 and 55 and in good health. Participants will be asked to give two tablespoons of blood and consent to being entered on the national registry.

"Potential matches are contacted for additional blood tests," Waters said. "If more laboratory tests identify a potentially successful match, there is a detailed information session and the potential donor decides whether to proceed."

The National Marrow Donor Program lists information about 950,000 potential donors, including some 50,000 African Americans. "We believe that we can make a difference," Waters said.

For more information about the program or the registration drive, contact Waters at 325-2033.