Marrow donor program drive Saturday

People can register this Saturday for the National Marrow Donor Program Registry during a benefit at Valley Rockwood Clinic.

Organized in support of Teresa Seely, who has leukemia, and her family, the 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. benefit is scheduled in the west parking lot of the clinic at 14408 E. Sprague Ave. and will include a barbecue, car wash and raffles.

The Inland Northwest Blood Center will offer a marrow donor registration drive. Each day, as many as 6,000 patients in need of a life-saving marrow transplant search the NMDP registry for a matched donor. Because only 30 percent will find a donor within their family, volunteers are needed.

Nearly 7 million Americans are on the NMDP Registry.

To join the Registry, people need to:

•Be between the ages of 18 and 60;

•Be willing to donate to any patient in need;

•Meet health guidelines.

Joining the registry is as easy as completing a registration form and submitting a cheek swab. People who join the registry during Saturday’s event will be asked to contribute $25 toward their tissue-typing fee. However, no one will be turned away. Those found to be a match for a patient may be asked to donate bone marrow from the hip or peripheral stem cells from the blood.

For more information about the NMDP, donor eligibility criteria or the donation process, call Inland Northwest Blood Center’s marrow program at 232-4492, or visit the NMDP Web site at www.marrow.org. To learn more about the benefit event at Valley Rockwood Clinic, call 744-1744, ext. 2335.