The South African Bone Marrow Registry

Did you know that the South African Bone Marrow Registry (SABMR) is housed at UCT's Laboratory for Tissue Immunology? Every year thousands of South Africans with blood diseases like leukaemia reach a stage where the only hope of a cure is a bone marrow transplant. Only 25% of these will find a family donor. To help the other 75%, registries of unrelated individuals have been established worldwide. A non-profit organisation, the SABMR was established in 1991 by Professor Ernette du Toit and Professor Peter Jacobs to provide unrelated donors for South African patients. “Because of the presence of rare HLA (tissue typing) antigens, particularly in patients of African ancestry, it was important to establish a South African registry,” Du Toit said. The SABMR is a member of the World Marrow Donor Association (WMDA) and has been designated the HUB centre for South Africa. You can apply to join the registry by calling 404-6445 (www.sabmr.co.za).

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