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Join Brown Football In Support of Bone Marrow Donor Testing Drive
Courtesy of Brown Sports Information
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The Brown University
football team has joined collegiate football teams throughout the
country in sponsoring a bone marrow donor testing drive on Monday,
April 26 in an effort to recruit 5,000 new bone marrow volunteers
to the Be The Match Registry. The drive, sponsored by Brown
Football, the Brown Medical School and the RI Blood Center, will be
held on the Brown campus at Andrew’s Hall, from 11:00 a.m. to
4:00 p.m.
The drive is part of the “Get in the Game. Save a
Life.” campaign for the National Marrow Donor Program.
Thousands of patients with leukemia and other life-threatening
diseases depend on the “Be The Match” Registry to find
a match.
To join the registry, a person must be between the ages of 18 and
60, meet the health guidelines and be willing to donate to any
patient in need. Registration is simple, and involves completing a
health history form and giving a swab of cheek cells. Donors with
diverse racial or ethnic backgrounds are especially critical.
Individuals will become a member of the National Marrow Donor
Program (NMDP) Be The Match Registry.
Brown football head coach Phil Estes and 85 members of the Brown
football team have been creating awareness for the bone marrow
donor drive on the Brown campus for the last six weeks, and
encouraging university faculty, staff, students and the local
community to be a part of the national movement and join the Be The
Match Registry.
For thousands of patients with life-threatening diseases such as
leukemia and lymphoma, a marrow transplant from an unrelated donor
is their best or only hope for a cure. These patients depend
on Be The Match registry to find a match – and a second
chance at life.
The Be The Match registry has been fostered by Villanova’s
head coach Andy Talley, who has dedicated more than 15 years to
raising awareness about the need for marrow donors. He has
recruited thousands of members to the registry by encouraging his
football team and their friends to join – last year more than
8,000 people joined through a “Get in the Game. Save A
Life” donor drive. Talley’s aim is to increase
the liklihood that all patients receive life-saving transplants
they need. In addition to Brown University, almost 30 college
football teams are participating in the program.
Brown University Football “Get in the Game. Save a
Life.” Marrow Donor Registry Drive:
Monday, Apr. 26, 2010
11:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Andrews Hall
Brown University
(800) 283-8385 ext. 720
