Mudbloods

"On any given day, more than 6,000 men, women and children are searching the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) Registry for a life-saving donor like you." - from the National Marrow Donor Program.

6,000 people looking for a donor a day. It's like a small town that every day connects to the internet looking for a few cells harbored in some stranger's bones that could save a life, since people who need bone marrow transplants have usually leukemia, lymphoma or similar life-threatening diseases. It's a lot.

However, compatibility is a big issue: the more compatible the tissue between the donor and the receiver, the easier it is for the tissue to stay put inside the receiver's body.

Unfortunately, outside one's family it is quite difficult to find a good match, and that's why there are registries where people who want to be donors are classified and whenever there is a good match are called up to save lives. You don't need to be working on an ambulance or at the hospital, no 10 years of med school+training, no $100,000 loans to pay back, no headaches, nothing. One single step into the registry, and you can save a life. And since compatibility is an issue, one might think there are rules that can include as many people as possible as potential donors.

As a matter of fact, the donor needs to be in good health to donate. Obvious, I would say.
No, 17 years old are not old enough, and if you're over 60, well you should have thought about it before. Also, if you have viruses like hepatitis or HIV circulating in your body, thank you for thinking about it, but seriously, no.

"Oh right, I know your heart disease problems are under control... take care of your own health FIRST."

"Yeah I know you got that little STD from your old partner, but you know what, you can donate bone marrow since herpes, HPV, chlamydia or syphilis are not really affecting the cells we need and the transplant does not transport the STDs into the patient's body."

"Ok fine, you had cancer, but it's not that bad, if it was an in situ cancer and did not spread around it's ok, we need people so you can donate, sure."

"Wait a minute: you are a man and had sex ONCE in the past FIVE years with another man? You must be kidding me, that's totally insane! How could you think you can donate?
I know you had all the tests done and haven't had sex in the past six months, but maybe some sort of unknown gay virus remained attached to your skin and by osmosis it will be passed to the patient!
No, I don't care if you and your partner have been in a monogamous relationship for the past 25 years, you touched another man's penis! Don't you have your own you can play with? That's just dirty, you cannot donate bone marrow. No way."

Now seriously: how many straight people have regular STD tests done? Are HIV and hepatitis still considered gay diseases? Isn't it time to change rules put together more than 20 years ago or does the National Registry have enough donors that they don't need homosexual men?

...

For your record: the National Marrow Donor Program guidelines regarding HIV and hepatitis are based on the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requirements for blood donors. You're right: if you're an active homosexual man you cannot donate blood either.

Dirty mudblood, don't even think about it.