WINDHOEK, May 20 — Namibian health organizations are stepping up efforts to address a severe national shortage of registered stem cell donors through a partnership with the international “Matches on the Map” awareness campaign.
The Namibian Oncology Centre (NOC) announced on Monday its support for the Cancer Association of Namibia (CAN) in a joint initiative, which includes a supplementary donor registration event at the NOC facility in the national capital of Windhoek on Wednesday.
This event aims to build momentum for CAN’s main public drive, which will take place on Friday and highlight Namibia‘s urgent need for stem cell donors.
Namibia currently faces a severe shortage of registered stem cell donors, with only 800 individuals on the registry compared to 80,000 in neighboring South Africa, NOC said in a statement.
According to NOC, each year, dozens of Namibian patients with blood cancers and other life-threatening conditions require stem cell transplants, yet very few find suitable matches because of the limited donor pool and the need for close genetic compatibility.
“We are honored to support CAN’s vital initiative by hosting this registration drive,” said Anthea van Wyk, managing director of NOC. “With match probabilities ranging from 1 in 100,000 to 1 in 400,000 depending on ethnic background, every new registration facilitated by this partnership can mean a second chance at life for someone in our community,” she added.
According to van Wyk, the “Matches on the Map” campaign, led by South African cancer survivor Robin Lewis and his wife Jolandie, is the world’s first intercontinental stem cell donor awareness drive brought to Namibia by CAN.
While Namibia currently relies on the South African Bone Marrow Registry for donor matching, CAN and its supporting partners are committed to long-term solutions.
“This collaborative approach between healthcare organizations demonstrates what we can achieve together. NOC is proud to support CAN’s work with the Ministry of Health and Social Services to explore the development of a national registry and to increase public education on stem cell donation,” van Wyk said.
