Overview

In 1998, Moshe Schayek, a young man desperate for a bone marrow transplant, turned to Ezer Mizion for assistance in finding a matching donor. Ezer Mizion's Cancer Support Division helped his family coordinate a bone marrow drive, but no match was found among the 5,000 people who participated in the drive. Sadly, the young man died, but he left a legacy that has enabled dozens of other sick Jews to live. The 5,000 potential donors who registered in that original drive formed the nucleus of the Ezer Mizion International Bone Marrow Donor Registry.

In April 2008, Ezer Mizion’s Bone Marrow Donor Registry celebrated a landmark as it passed the 350,000 mark! 

As of  October 1, 2008, the Registry has grown to include 384,196 potential donors!  An incredible 75,530 of these potential donors are IDF recruits who joined the registry following a landmark agreement between Ezer Mizion and the Israel Defence Forces whereby new recruits routinely undergo testing as part of their induction process.  

Since the establishment of Ezer Mizion's Bone Marrow Donor Registry in 1998, it has handled thousands of search requests from dozens of transplant centers in over 30 countries around the world.  Ezer Mizion's Registry has made 1,650 complete donor-patient matches that have facilitated hundreds of stem cell transplants saving the lives of Jewish patients throughout the world and sparing thousands of people untold anguish.

Today, the Ezer Mizion Bone Marrow Donor Registry is the largest Jewish registry in the world. Because donors and recipients need to be genetically compatible, Jewish patients generally require Jewish stem cell donors donors.  The Registry is a vital resource for  thousands of sick Jews and serves an insurance policy for Jews everywhere.

The Ezer Mizion registry is housed in Ezer Mizion's Oranit Guest Home for young cancer patients and their families.

Ezer Mizion's registry is affiliated with the National Bone Marrow Donor Program and is a member of Bone Marrow Donors Worldwide. Under the direction of Dr. Bracha Zisser, Director of Oranit, and Ofra Konikoff, the Registry's Transplant Coordinator, the registry continues to grow, offering hope to growing numbers of patients.

Related links:

 Bone Marrow and Jewish Genetics

Bone Marrow Donation: The Process

Personalized Donor Pools

FAQ's

IDF and Ezer Mizion Sign Landmark Agreement

The Greatest Gift of All

Another life saved - almost

Air Force Navigator Leaves War to Donate Stem Cells Saving Babys' Life

London - Bone Marrow Awareness Evening in Memory of Lloyd Gerard z"l

Omri's Story