By Cai Wenjun
 

Shanghai Daily

Source: http://www.shanghaidaily.com/art/2005/10/19/205185/

MORE than 800 doctors and nurses from Zhongshan Hospital registered with the
Shanghai Stem Cell Donor Bank yesterday, to help solve the shortage of samples at the bank and encourage more people to register and donate stem cells.

Doctors said local residents can also donate blood, as the requirements for
giving blood are less strict than those for donating stem cells.

Stem cell transplants are the most effective method for treating leukemia
currently. About 4 million people in China have leukemia and another 40,000
people are diagnosed with the disease every year.

"As medical professionals, we want to devote our efforts to helping leukemia
patients and telling the public that such donations are harmless through this registration event," said Dr Lai Hao, a surgeon in Zhongshan's cardiac
department.

To date, stem cell banks across the country have only collected 260,000 donor
samples, compared with about 4.7 million in the United States and 3.7 million in
Europe.

According to medical experts, a healthy person can regenerate donated stem
cells within one to two weeks. In addition to stem cells, local medical facilities

say they also suffer from frequent shortages of blood.

The Zhongshan Hospital surgeon said his department deals with about one
major blood shortage every six months and sometime has to delay elective
surgeries.

"Donating blood is also a good way to help other people," he said.