Research has shed light on inequities in the current stem cell donor recruitment framework. DKMS Africa says it's time to bridge the donor divide for Black South Africans, establishing a future where every patient receives a fighting chance.
In a country where diversity is celebrated, the health disparities faced by Black South African patients with blood cancers and blood disorders tell a different story. For years, hopeful patients searching for a stem cell donor were burdened with the belief that their ethnic background severely diminished their chances of finding a match. However, groundbreaking research recently published in Blood Global Hematology challenges this long-held misconception, revealing the real issue lies not in genetic diversity, but rather in the inadequacies of the current donor registry.
This is according to Palesa Mokomele, Head of Community Engagement and Communication at DKMS Africa, who says the study examined nearly 57,000 South Africans, meticulously mapping the HLA profiles across the nation’s various population groups. HLA markers are critical in determining compatibility for stem cell transplants. Encouragingly, the findings indicate that for a Black South African patient seeking a match, the probability of finding a full match in a community registry comprising one million donors is an impressive 80%. For White South Africans, the figure stands at 81%. Surprisingly, it appears that the genetic fabric of South African society is not the barrier once presumed.
