Help for little Elina – How cotton swabs can save lives

There is a 1 in 500,000 chance that two people will match. But behind this song is not a love story, but genetics. Because that’s how great the chance of finding a suitable stem cell donor is. So-called typing campaigns are mainly responsible for this. After all, the most important condition for a sometimes life-saving stem cell transplant is the availability of a compatible donor with compatible tissue characteristics.

Little Elina is also currently searching for her “genetic twin” – in hopes of a saving stem cell donation. The girl was born with a heart defect and an immune deficiency. A simple cheek swab (typing) can save the lives of Elina and other affected people.

How a stem cell donation works
There are two methods of obtaining stem cells: peripheral donation and bone marrow donation. In the case of a peripheral donation of stem cells, the collection takes place via the peripheral blood system using two cannulas and a cell separator connected between them. This takes four to five hours and is done on an outpatient basis, after which the donor can go home. Some preliminary tests are needed to prepare for the donation, as well as the administration of a growth factor four days before the donation to mobilize the stem cells from the bone marrow.

Typing campaigns also in Lower Austria
This is also possible in Lower Austria: on Saturdays from 3 to 6 p.m. at McDonald’s in Wiener Neustadt and on November 26 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the VAZ Trumau. The association “Give for Life – Leukemia Aid Austria” and the Red Cross call on all healthy people to be typed. At the Red Cross in Lower Austria, 10,279 people are currently typed.

More information and registration:
www.gebenfuerleben.at
roteskreuz.at/stammzellen