There are 6.6 million bone marrow donors registered with the National Marrow Donor Program, yet the odds of a minority patient finding a compatible donor is 20,000 to one, according to the Cammy Lee Leukemia Foundation web site. Dartmouth students tried to add a few more names to the donor list with a marrow drive held in Collis Common Ground on Tuesday.
The drive, sponsored by the Cammy Lee Leukemia Foundation and the Dartmouth Asian Organization, was aimed specifically at registering donors from minority groups, which make up only 30 percent of all registered volunteer donors.
To increase the number of minority donors, particularly those of Asian and Pacific Islander descent, the foundation holds minority bone marrow registration drives at different locations across the nation.
The family of Cammy Lee, for whom the foundation is named, experienced difficulty finding a minority donor when Lee, who is of Asian descent, was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of 13. Lee pointed out that dedicated efforts to draw more people to the registry are crucial, because the pool yields far fewer matches than its size would suggest.
"It's really rare," Lee said. "As many drives as we do, maybe every year we'll have one or two potentials."
The foundation works particularly closely with colleges and universities.
This relationship stems from the work of national fraternity Lambda Phi Epsilon to sponsor bone marrow drives after a brother at Stanford University's chapter was diagnosed with leukemia in 1996. Dartmouth's first drive, held last May, was organized by the Society of Unity and Leadership.
Last year's drive drew about 160 potential donors, according to David Louie '09, one of the organizers of the event and a member of both DAO and SOUL.
The turnout at a given college drive varies with the size of the school and recruitment efforts, Lee said, but she sets a goal of about 50 people per day -- an admittedly tough goal to meet.
"But if we get ten, then that's ten more people in the registry," she said.
A federal grant waives the ordinary $52 registration fee for minorities, Lee said, to encourage them to volunteer.
She added that as of about two years ago, a "Collegiate Fund" allows the foundation to register one Caucasian student for free for every minority student who signs up.
Students who choose to volunteer have their mouths swabbed with cotton in four places. The analysis of the collected saliva indicates whether the potential donor shares six of 10 bone marrow antigens with a patient on the registry.
If there is a six antigen match, the volunteer is then asked to undergo a test for the remaining four.
Volunteers must be 18 years old to register and remain on the list until age 61.
Louie admitted the time and location of this year's drive could have been more favorable.
"It's finals week, and it's raining," he said. "Last year we held the second day on Collis Porch."
Allison Kay '09 said she volunteered because of the event's appeal to her academic interests.
"I'm pre-medical, so I definitely try to take part in things that are medically related," Kay said.
Karen Tang '08 said that she added her name to the list of donors without hesitation.
"How can you say no?" she asked.
The drive continues Wednesday in Tindle Lounge.
