If you’re following along with us on Instagram, you know that Kirst recently shared she has been matched with a patient through Be the Match. She’s in the middle of the steps it takes to become a donor for this patient and through sharing this with the WAF community learned about Salute to Life. We reached out to them and asked the to share a little about their organization and how it impacts the military community. Please please please take a few minutes to learn about this excellent program and if you’re able to, register!
WHAT IS SALUTE TO LIFE?
Salute to Life, also known as the C.W. Bill Young Department of Defense Marrow Donor Program, facilitates bone marrow and peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) donation among U.S. active military members and their dependents, DoD civilian employees, Reservists, and Coast Guard and National Guard members.
WHO CAN BE A DONOR?
To register through our program, you must meet three criteria:
- Be affiliated with the U.S. Department of Defense. There are a number of wonderful civilian programs such as Be The Match, DKMS Americas, Gift of Life, and others – and we all recruit to the same database, or registry – but our services are exclusively for the convenience of DoD-affiliates.
- Be between the ages of 18 and 60. Bone marrow donors are automatically removed from the registry at age 61 – this is a national guideline – and no program may list individuals under the age of consent.
- Be of general good health. The health requirements for bone marrow donors differ than those for blood donors. We are happy to accept individuals who lived or traveled in malaria or Zika risk areas, had recent immunizations, or are ineligible to donate blood for lifestyle reasons. Our disqualifying conditions include autoimmune diseases, kidney or liver disease, bleeding disorders, previous heart attack or stroke, HIV, or Hepatitis B or C infection. However, most military members are in such good health that disqualifications are infrequent.
WHO ARE ELIGIBLE RECIPIENTS?
Our program – indeed most donor programs in the United States – add individuals to a massive database that we call the registry. This registry is where patients’ doctors will search for potential matches. Patients can be anyone in need of transplant. This includes civilians and military, individuals of all ages and backgrounds, located both domestically and internationally.
HOW DOES SOMEONE SIGN-UP?
Registration is very easy: Complete a consent form and provide a bit of information, then complete buccal (or cheek) swabs. The entire process takes less than 10 minutes and costs nothing. The materials are returned to our Donor Center, where the consent forms are scanned and the swabs are processed and the donor’s HLA (human leukocyte antigen) type is determined. It is by this HLA type that donors are listed on the registry and matched with patients. Once on the registry, donors will receive a “welcome” email and/or text message.
*It is important that everyone understand that registration is not the same as donation, and that individuals should not register if they would not be willing to actually donate. Donation takes place once a patient has matched to a donor. Only a small percentage of donors match with patients, but when that happens we hope that donors realize the timely, critical nature of the situation. A real patient is making treatment decisions based on that donor’s actions.
Once matched, our organization would contact the donor, provide education, and ask the donor to complete a health history screening and provide a blood sample at a local lab. Once through this initial evaluation, the donor receives a full physical exam. Donation itself takes place by one of two methods: Traditional marrow donation or PBSC donation. Traditional marrow donation is a surgical procedure, where marrow cells are extracted from the hip bones while the donor is under anesthetic. PBSC donation involves five days of injections of a drug that causes the bones to release the marrow cells into the blood system, followed by a non-surgical apheresis procedure that removes those marrow cells.
WHAT IS THE IMPACT OF SALUTE TO LIFE?
In the history of our program, we have registered more than 1 million new potential donors, processed more than 140,000 preliminary match requests, and helped collect more than 8700 cellular donations. While, sadly, not every donation will guarantee a life saved, the hope offered by their actions is incalculable.
Of note: As with most organizations and individuals, the world of marrow donation has been severely impacted by the COVID-19 virus. Military personnel and their families have been under travel restrictions. Hospitals and health care providers, stretched by staff and patient needs and supply shortfalls, have closed their doors to “elective” procedures, and changed access policies. However, cancer is relentless and patients continue to need transplants during these trying circumstances. Our donors have astounded us with their persistence and selflessness. They have accommodated changes to the types of donations (marrow vs. PBSC), facility locations, and travel plans. One donor changed every aspect of his donation in a single day. Another donor was forced to switch locations four times before finally completing his procedure. We are so grateful to every donor for their commitment to the health and well-being of strangers in need.
