AutismInBlack.com
Discussion about autism in the African American community. Emphasis is placed on issues that are unique to the community which may prevent or deter proper diagnosis and treatment.
African American men, women and children are dying because they are unable to find matching African American donors for bone marrow transplants to fight diseases such as Leukemia, Lymphoma, and even Sickle Cell Anemea.
Race, or better yet ethnicity matters when it comes to finding a matching donor. Searching patients are most likely to find the best match within their own race or ethnicity. By increasing the diversity of the Be The Match Registry(SM) we can have a positive impact on these figures so that more patients are able to find matching donors.
- Compared to other race groups, African Americans are least likely to find at least one potential match.
- African Americans only have a estimated 66% likelihood of having a donor on the Be The Match Registry who is willing and able to donate. For Caucasians its 93%
- Even then, in 2010, just under 4 out of 10 patients of all ethnic groups in the U.S. received the unrelated transplant* they needed. This is referring to receiving transplants, not finding matches. .
- In addition to not having a matched donor or cord blood unit, barriers to transplant include lack of access to health care, no or limited insurance coverage, lack of timely referral for transplant, and decline in health status.
