Ruth Cadbury MP has encouraged people locally to sign up for the Stem Cell register ran by the charity Anthony Nolan, which can help save the lives of those with blood cancer. In particular Ruth highlighted the importance of increasing the diversity of the register for stem cell donations to ensure that those from a minority ethnic background could access a much needed transplant. This came after Ruth visited an event held in Parliament on the 26th October which was part of the Communities v Blood Cancer Campaign by Anthony Nolan.
This event was held to shine a light on the work being done to ensure that every patient needing a stem cell transplant can find a match. More than 865,000 people in the UK are on the Anthony Nolan register, any of whom could be a match for someone with blood cancer or a blood disorder and be asked to donate their stem cells to give a patient a second chance of life.
Speaking in full afterwards Ruth said,
‘‘It’s so important that more people sign up to stem cell register- signing up means you increase the chance of blood cancer patients finding a match. We particularly need men between the ages of 18-30 and those from a minority ethnic background to sign up.
.Registering to become a stem cell donor is straightforward and could make an enormous difference to someone with no other chance of a cure.
I was proud to support Anthony Nolan and the tireless work that they have done to support those with blood cancer, and to raise awareness about this important issue. I will continue to campaign to ensure that we see more young people and those from a minority ethnic background on the register’’