Overweight people are “equally good” stem cell donors as those of a healthy weight, a charity has found.
New research by the British Bone Marrow Registry and blood cancer charity Anthony Nolan found that clinically obese people can successfully donate cells through a simple procedure called peripheral blood stem cell collection (PBSC).
Stem cell transplants are used in the treatment of blood disorders and cancers such as leukaemia.
Anthony Nolan said that in the past it was commonly thought that people with a high Body Mass Index (BMI) were more likely to experience side effects such as bone pain from donating their stem cells.
But the new research, which is to be presented at the 10th International Donor Registry Conference be ing held in London today, found the contrary after a small sample of people with a BMI of 35 were assessed for a year after donating stem cells through PBSC.
Currently, nine out of 10 stem cell donations are given through the bloodstream, so it is very encouraging to see evidence that this method is safe for donors with a BMI of 35-40
The small study found that these 19 donors experienced no more side effects than those people with a BMI of under 35, the charity said.
Annelies Billen, medical officer at Anthony Nolan, said: “Currently, nine out of 10 stem cell donations are given through the bloodstream, so it is very encouraging to see evidence that this method is safe for donors with a BMI of 35-40, although numbers in this study are small.
“This knowledge will help us save more lives as it will help us widen the pool of potential donors on our registry.
“We would welcome further research to improve this evidence base and will continue to monitor this group of donors in the future.”