Support for the development of a South African Bone Marrow Registry 

The international registries of bone marrow donors, which encompasses nearly 80% of donors worldwide, are interconnected to optimize the chances of finding compatible donors. The quality of these registries’ communication systems now makes it possible to identify a possible compatible donor within 24 hours. The national registries are therefore interfaces between the doctors who perform the grafts, donor centers and the international registries. They ensure the validation of the donor, the coordination and organization of bone marrow sample-taking and guarantee anonymity.

The South African Bone Marrow Registry (SABMR) centralizes, by means of a secure IT network, all the characteristics of the potential donors registered by the South African donor centers. It currently has a list of over 64,000 donors.

The SABMR has been recognized by the World Marrow Donor Association (WMDA). Nevertheless, in order to be an integral part of this international association, the SABMR would like to institute steps to certify its systems so that the necessary quality label may be obtained. This will permit South African patients and donors to be included in the worldwide network.

The Air Liquide Foundation’s aid will help improve how the SAMBR functions, notably by changing its communication system and undertaking a certification approach. Moreover, the development of the SAMBR is also accompanied by the relocation of its teams to larger premises that are better adapted to the requirements of safety, confidentiality and accessibility for its donors and patients.