Critical need for young male donors: SABMR issues plea amid widening gap

The South African Bone Marrow Registry (SABMR) is urgently appealing to young men aged 16–35 to register as stem cell donors, as their critical underrepresentation is costing lives. Despite being the most effective donors – offering better transplant outcomes and fewer complications – young men make up only 8.9% of registered donors in the country, far below the global average of 39%.

This shortfall severely limits the chances of finding suitable matches for patients with life-threatening blood cancers, especially those from certain ethnic groups. With June marking Youth Month, the SABMR is calling on young men to step up and take action.

Jane Ward, deputy director for the SABMR, says while they have seen a noticeable increase in the number of youth signing up to the registry, the number of young women registering far outweighs that of their male counterparts.

“Our donor recruitment teams have been specifically targeting schools, universities and colleges over the last two years to spread awareness and sign up younger donors, but male representation is still lagging behind.”

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