Bone Marrow Donation: Save a life without harming yourself.
Dharma Master Cheng Yen could not bear to see so many patients suffering from blood diseases. After she learned that bone marrow donation can save lives without harming the donor, she established the Tzu Chi Marrow Donor Registry in 1993, later renamed Buddhist Tzu Chi Stem Cells Center in 2002. In addition to its original function as a marrow donation database, this institution has evolved to include stem cell research and gene therapy, as well as the establishment of an umbilical cord blood repository. All these serve to bring new hope to human medical treatments. Thanks to many campaigns and the enthusiastic participation of Tzu Chi volunteers, many kind-hearted people have been motivated to take the blood tests required for marrow matching. The encouragement and support that volunteers offer to bone marrow donors is a reflection of the deep compassion that can be found within Taiwanese society.
