Robin Roberts marks 10 years since lifesaving bone marrow transplant: How to become a donor
Good Morning America celebrated 10 years since Robin Roberts return to the show on Tuesday.
Robin Roberts is no stranger to facing adversity. She received a breast cancer diagnosis in 2007 and then a diagnosis of myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), a rare blood disorder that affects the bone marrow, five years later. Thankfully, her sister Sally-Ann was a virtually perfect match and she underwent a successful bone marrow transplant on September 20, 2012.
When Roberts returned to her "Good Morning America" family on February 20, 2013, she was empowered to make her mess her message. She shared intimate details of her life-threatening disease, documented in the Peabody Award-winning ABC News special, "Robin's Journey," to help educate and inform millions, as well as potentially save thousands of lives.
HOW TO BECOME A BONE MARROW DONOR: Be The Match or text GMA to 61474.
Good Morning America celebrated 10 years since Robin Roberts' return to the show after her treatment on Tuesday.
During an interview with WABC-TV Eyewitness News anchor Shirleen Allicot, Robin reflected on what the last 10 years have meant to her.
"You know, I haven't really taken time because I've been so focused on the 10 years and showing the growth of the treatment and the people who have been impacted by our viewers responding to the call to be the match, that I really haven't taken the time until this moment to think about me and what this moment means to me," she said. "I am grateful that my mama taught me make your mess your message and that I have been able to find the meaning behind why this was placed in my path.
Now, the survivor turned thriver is working hard to make sure others get the same chance, continuing her advocacy to build the registry of donors for "Be the Match."
"I was very, very blessed. That one of my three siblings SallyAnn was a match. It was a perfect match," she said. "Now you leapfrog 10 years later, you don't need a perfect match. Now back 10 years ago, you did. That's the technology. That's the growth that we've seen in these last 10 years. 20:18 But the registry is a literal life lived for countless people."
Over the past decade, Roberts and "GMA" have continued to report extensively about blood stem cell transplants, which can cure or treat more than 75 different diseases and spread awareness of the importance of the Be The Match registry, a nonprofit organization operated by the National Marrow Donor Program, which manages the world's largest bone marrow donor registry.
At least 26,812 people were added to the bone marrow registry and 140 people have gone on to receive a lifesaving bone marrow donation thanks to this reporting through the years, according to Be the Match.
While Roberts had a perfect match within her own family, approximately 70% of patients do not have a matching donor in their family and must turn to registries like Be The Match for their cure. A patient's chance of having a matched, available donor on the Be The Match Registry ranges from 29% to 79%, depending on the patient's ethnic background.
Now more than ever the need is urgent, and the statistics are stunning. Be The Match reports regional and national recruitment efforts decreased 36% during the height of the pandemic. Be The Match also reports only 50% of people on the registry will go on to make a donation when they're a match for a patient in need. Be The Match has put a call out in particular for younger donors under the age of 40, as research has shown younger donors help improve overall outcomes for patients.
To help continue to raise awareness of the bone marrow registry, "GMA" has partnered with Be The Match in the "One Match, Second Chance" series to continue to raise awareness and to help save lives. Learn how to take the first step to sign up to become a donor today.
