The Cyprus Bone Marrow Donor Registry was created and operates with the aim of facilitating the process of finding matching donors for patients with leukemia or other hematologic malignancies and related diseases. The most appropriate time for a doctor to contact the Karaiskakio Foundation is when the patient’s diagnosis has been verified and it has been decided that at some point in the patient’s treatment there will be a need for bone marrow transplantation.

What is the preliminary investigation?

The preliminary investigation in order to find a matching donor comprises of the initial typing of the patient and their immediate family members (siblings, parents and children). At the same time a search of the existing donors on the registry and a search of donors which are currently recorded in Bone Marrow Donors Worldwide (BMDW) is conducted.

Who can request for a preliminary investigation?

A preliminary search can only be requested by the attending physician (usually a Hematologist or Oncologist), when they consider that the patient may need allogeneic bone marrow transplantation. A search can also be requested by any transplant center or by any other formal bone marrow donor registry, but never from the patient.

Is typing of the immediate family members of the patient important?

Initial typing of the immediate family members is very important because they are the most likely to be compatible. By processing the results and determining the HLA haplotype (group of antigens inherited by the patient from both parents), the next steps for the search for a compatible donor can be organized more efficiently.

When should the search expand to the extended family environment of the patient?

After the search within the immediate family members of the patient is completed without finding a matching donor, then, based on the frequency of the two haplotypes of the patient in the population, the search for a matching donor is targeted to the extended family environment of the father or mother (uncles, aunts, cousins, etc.). In the event that both parents of the patient are from the same village, then the search is focused on the residents of this village.

How does an official search differ from a preliminary investigation?

The official search starts only when it is decided that a bone marrow transplantation is absolutely necessary. It requires the referral of the patient to a transplant center and also the briefing and further laboratory testing of potential donors.

What are the options when a fully compatible donor is not found?

When a matching donor has not been found within the immediate or extended family or among the existing bone marrow donors of the registry, the investigation is extended to donors who are currently recorded in the Bone Marrow Donors Worldwide registry (BMDW). At the same time, a parallel search is carried out for an alternative source of graft such as the umbilical cord blood.

What is Bone Marrow Donors Worldwide (BMDW)?

Bone Marrow Donors Worldwide (BMDW) is the result of a collaboration of dozens of donor registries which have deposited their records in an electronic archive. The volunteer donors in BMDW number more than 20 million, to whom the Cyprus Bone Marrow Donor Registry has direct access via the internet.

How long does a search for a donor take?

The completion of a search for a matching donor could take anything from a few days to a few months, depending on the tissue type of the patient. Therefore, it is very important for the physician to refer the patient to Karaiskakio Foundation directly and promptly after diagnosis for the necessary search to begin in a timely manner.

Who covers the costs for searching for a donor?

The whole process of finding a donor for a patient is expensive. Nonetheless Karaiskakio Foundation, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, takes care of securing the necessary financial resources needed to carry out the search without any financial burden to the patient or their family.