MORE than 1,000 stem cell donors are registered in North Swindon - but there needs to be more.

A digital day of action celebrated the number of potential stem cell donors in the area and raised awareness of the urgent need for more donors in light of the challenges to donor recruitment presented by the pandemic.

Justin Tomlinson MP took part in the awareness day with Anthony Nolan.

In North Swindon, 1,030 potential stem cell donors are registered with the charity - 17 per cent of them are men aged 16-30, and the average age is 40 years old.

More than 800,000 people in the UK are on the register, and any could be a match for someone with blood cancer, asked to donate their stem cells and save a life.

Men aged 16-30 are most likely to be asked to donate, providing more than half of donations, yet make up just 18 per cent of the register. And there is a shortage of donors from non-white and mixed-race backgrounds.

Mr Tomlinson is encouraging more people in his constituency who fall into those categories to join the register as stem cell donors and make sure that a match is available for everyone in need of a transplant.

He said: “I am very proud that North Swindon has 1,030 registered donors, any one of whom could offer the only chance of giving someone with blood cancer a second chance at life.

"Donating stem cells is straightforward but it could make an enormous difference to someone with no other chance of a cure.”

Anthony Nolan chief executive Henny Braund said: “In the last year, 66 selfless people from North Swindon joined the Anthony Nolan register, each one representing hope for patients with blood cancer, and blood disorders, in need of matching stem cell donors.

“This Blood Cancer Awareness Month, residents can be proud of all the lifesavers in your community. To everyone from North Swindon who has taken the decision to join the register, thank you.

"We rely on young people aged 16-30 joining the register now to save lives in the future. Without you, there is no cure.”

Anthony Nolan uses its register to match potential stem cell donors to blood cancer patients in desperate need of a stem cell transplant. It also carries out vital research to make stem cell transplants more successful, and supports patients through their transplant journeys.

Visit anthonynolan.org/join