The “Get Swabbed" event willing be happening at Trent University on Thursday, November 27 at Otonabee College and at the Athletic Centre. This event aims to register willing donors into a Canadian and an international stem cell database so they can be contacted if they are a match for a person in need (such as people with leukemia, Hunter’s syndrome, Sickle Cell Anemia, etc.). During the event, participants can easily register with the help of our volunteers.  It’s just a cheek swab.  If a donor is a match for a patient in need in future, they will be contacted and asked to undergo further tests to ensure a match. If they are a match, they will then be asked to donate their stem cells.

The Get Swabbed event is the first step for the OneMatch program. Canadian Blood Services’ OneMatch Stem Cell and Marrow Network is a program dedicated to recruiting healthy, committed volunteer donors for patients in need of stem cell transplants to treat potentially life-threatening illnesses. In addition, OneMatch also

• Coordinates searches for matched, unrelated donors for patients;
• Ensures donors are healthy and able to donate; and
• Organizes the collection and delivery of stem cells in Canada and around the world.

More information about OneMatch program will be available at the Canadian Blood Services website: https://www.blood.ca/en/stem-cells

Posted on Saturday, November 22, 2014.