Welsh Bone Marrow Donor Registry (WBMDR)

The Welsh Blood Service, the primary supplier of blood products to NHS Wales, manages the Welsh Bone Marrow Donor Registry, which supplies stem cell products nationally and internationally. The registry is a panel of volunteers willing to donate bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cells, searched daily for matches. People can join from age 16 until their 31st birthday, or until their 46th birthday if they are of Black, Asian, mixed heritage or minority ethnic background, by asking at a blood donation appointment, and remain on the panel until their 61st birthday. The service notes that 75 per cent of UK patients will not find a matching donor in their family.