Be The Match : )

If you have serious breathing problems such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), emphysema, sleep apnea or cystic fibrosis, you are not able to register.

Patient and donor safety is our top priority. Donor guidelines are developed by our Donor and Patient Safety Monitoring Committee. The committee is made up of medical directors from NMDP donor, transplant, apheresis and collection centers, a donor and a patient.

The primary risk associated with sleep apnea is related to marrow collection, which is a surgical procedure. Registry members must be able to donate either marrow or peripheral blood stem cells, depending on the needs of the patient.

Regulating anesthesia is more difficult in patients with breathing. After surgery, marrow donors may require narcotic pain medication, which can further depress breathing. In patients with sleep apnea, even a small amount of anesthetic sedation can cause decreased airflow.

Despite the risk, some registry members express their willingness to assume the risk in order to help a patient. While the NMDP appreciates the courage and compassion that motivates them, it would be unethical for the NMDP to allow donors to do so.

To learn about other way to help patients and their families, visit http://www.marrow.org/HELP/index.html?src=tabinvolved

Regarding your questions about narcolepsy or idiopathic hypersomnia disqualifying a donor, it would best be considered on a case-by-case basis to determine the extent to which it affected breathing, and what impact it might have on the ability to donate.