Marrow Facts

Now for the nitty gritty - here are a few marrow facts!

You give good marrow! Both men and women aged 18-40 are welcome to join our bone marrow register, but The Anthony Nolan Trust urgently needs more male donors aged 18-25. There are not enough young men on our register, meaning patients may be missing out on lifesaving treatment.

The Anthony Nolan Trust urgently needs more young people from all over the UK to join its register, especially those from black and minority ethnic backgrounds.

Men’s bone marrow is preferred for a number of clinical reasons, the main one being it provides a greater volume of blood stem cells than that of female donors. This assists with faster formation of the patient’s immune system post-transplant. If there is a choice of donor for a patient in most cases the patient’s transplant centre will select a male donor.

Celebrity male supporters of the register include Hollywood actor David Harewood and sportsmen Anton Ferdinand, Mike Catt, Lawrence Dallaglio, Adrian Chiles and Richard Hill.

Joining the register is easier than you think. Simply click on the registration page for details of what you need to do next.
The Anthony Nolan Trust manages and recruits new donors to the UK’s most successful bone marrow register and provides life-saving donors for patients in need of a bone marrow transplant.

For more information on how you could become a bone marrow donor click here.

Bone marrow where blood begins life

Bone marrow is the soft, jelly-like tissue that is found in the hollow centres of certain bones. It's the home of what are called 'stem cells' which are the building blocks of blood itself. These building blocks are: the red cells - which carry oxygen; the white cells - which fight infection, and the platelets - which stop bleeding. All these cells are produced by the stem cells and released into the blood stream via the veins and thin tissue surrounding the bone.

Without the bone marrow, blood can not be produced, so when things go wrong and the bone marrow becomes damaged, the patient must receive a stem cell transplant to survive.

What happens when I register?

We will ask you to supply a sample of your blood so we can identify your tissue type. Once we know what type you are your details will be added to a confidential computerised register and we'll send you a registration card with a unique identification number on it for easy reference.

Your details will be held on the registry for as long as you are able to give blood, or until the age of 60.

What happens if I'm identified as a potential donor?

You may be asked to provide another blood sample so extra checks on your tissue type can be made. If your tissue type does match and you are selected to donate bone marrow or stem cells the procedure will be explained to you fully by a counselling medical officer. We will ask you to have a few more blood tests to make sure there is no risk to you or the patient receiving the donation, and then take it from there.