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Donor Drive Sends Message To Health Community
The first bone marrow donor drive for multiracial children was an
overwhelming success. It was held July 20 in Washington, D.C. Bone marrow
donors are needed for people with leukemia and other blood diseases. There
is a critical shortage of donors for multiracial children and adults. Donors
for multiracial people are RARE because of the need for racial and ethnic
matching.
An overwhelming number of people were screened and 39 people were qualified
as potential donors at the drive. According to Joy Demas, Donor Resources
Coordinator for the National Institutes of Health, "It was a great response.
We learned of ancestries we had never heard about before."
Project RACE, the national organization leading the movement for a
multiracial classification sponsored the donor drive and will continue to
hold drives. The health care system in the United States has rendered the
multiracial community "invisible."
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