Stem cell transplant wait time considerably longer in poor countries. Nigeria's recently established bone marrow registry promises to boost lifesaving matches

Some 200,000 babies are born annually in sub-Saharan Africa with sickle cell disease, a blood disorder in which mutated red blood cells can clump and block blood vessels, causing pain, infection and organ damage. Nigeria has up to two million sickle cell patients, many of whom can benefit from stem cell transplants.

Stem cells are the building blocks of blood and immune cells. Establishing the mechanics of stem cell transplantation in Nigeria is a very important milestone, said Terry Schlaphoff, deputy director of South Africas bone marrow registry.

Bone marrow registries hold key information about stem cell donors to help match them with patients. There are currently two such registries in Africa, one in South Africa and now Nigeria.

In countries with low per capita incomes, stem cell transplants remain relatively rare due to lack of knowledge, trained health workers and, most importantly, availability of stem cells. African patients who need a matching donor have virtually no chance of survival, unless they are wealthy enough to travel abroad for treatment, said Seun Adebiyi, founder of Nigerias bone marrow registry.

Matching bone marrow or blood cells collected from donors to the patients who need it can offer lifesaving treatments for more than 70 diseases, including leukaemia, lymphoma (cancer) and sickle-cell anaemia.

Limited availability

Worldwide, there are fewer than 15 million registered donors, and patients far outstrip the number of donors, according to the Netherlands-based information centre, Bone Marrow Donors Worldwide (BMDW).

Reflecting only a fraction of overall need, 14,206 transplants from non-relatives and 4,255 transplants from umbilical cord blood were provided to patients worldwide in 2011, said Machteld Oudshoorn, chair of BMDWs editorial board.

For most patients in developing countries, awaiting a transplant remains associated with significant morbidity and mortality, and represents one example of high-cost, highly specialized medicine, according to a recent medical report.

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NIGERIA: Bone marrow register an important milestone

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