MINNEAPOLIS, March 19, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NMDPSM, the nonprofit organization that operates the national registry of unrelated blood stem cell donors and cord blood units, applauds Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), Tim Scott (R-SC), Tina Smith (D-MN) and James Lankford (R-OK) for introducing S. 4109, the Stem Cell Therapeutic and Research Reauthorization Act of 2026, in the United States Senate. The bipartisan bill would reauthorize the C.W. Bill Young Cell Transplantation Program for another five years, preserving and strengthening the nation’s federally-authorized registry and infrastructure that connects patients who are battling life-threatening blood cancers and diseases with life-saving volunteer unrelated donors. The companion bipartisan bill, H.R. 5160, was introduced in September 2025.
Every year, 18,500 patients are diagnosed with blood cancers or other diseases, like sickle cell disease or aplastic anemia, for which a blood stem cell transplant from a related or unrelated donor may be their best or only hope for a cure. However, 75% of patients do not have a matched donor in their family and rely on the national registry to find an unrelated donor or cord blood unit to give them a second chance at life. Since its inception in 1987, the Program has impacted nearly 150,000 patients, increasing the number of patients who have benefited by 33% over the last five fiscal years.1
“The goal of the Program has always been to help patients find their life-saving donor—a mission that remains as critical and urgent as ever,” said Amy Ronneberg, CEO, NMDP. “We are grateful for bipartisan support from our champions in Congress, especially Senators Reed, Scott, Smith and Lankford, who have stepped up to ensure that patients with blood cancers and other diseases can rely on this life-saving donor registry for years to come. This program is the gold standard of public-private partnership—in service of saving American lives—because the Program has continually evolved and modernized to improve patients’ lives and longevity."
Serving as the nation’s single point of access, the Program connects physicians to the best available life-saving cell options among the more than 42 million potential volunteer donors and hundreds of thousands of cord blood units listed on registries worldwide. Through the National Cord Blood Inventory (NCBI), it builds and maintains a high-quality, diverse supply of cord blood units to expand access for patients of all backgrounds. The Program also recruits young, healthy volunteer donors, provides patient navigation and support from diagnosis through transplant, and securely shares comprehensive transplant outcomes trend data to advance research and improve patients’ lives long after transplant. Together, these integrated components form a coordinated national ecosystem that serves national interests in saving more lives every day.
The Program drives innovation in transplant medicine leveraging securely collected, publicly available outcomes trend data that becomes a valuable comparative snapshot of how patient populations respond to certain cell therapies and novel approaches before those strategies are tested and validated in clinical trial settings. One such example are recent trial results representing a significant milestone in solving one of transplant medicine’s biggest challenges: finding a donor for every patient in need of a transplant and expanding access to the rapidly growing number of patients who may not have had any option for a cure or treatment via transplant just five years ago. This research shows that now 99% of all adult patients with common blood cancers have a suitable match to a life-saving donor.
Simultaneously, NMDP continues to call on healthy, committed adults ages 18 to 35, the age group that offers the best clinical outcomes to patients, to join the national volunteer donor registry and help save more lives. To learn more or sign up, visit: https://my.nmdp.org/transplantact.
About NMDP
At NMDP, we believe each of us holds the key to curing blood cancers and disorders. As a global nonprofit leader in cell therapy, NMDP creates essential connections between researchers and supporters to inspire action and accelerate innovation to find life-saving cures. With the help of blood cell donors from the world's most diverse registry and our extensive network of transplant partners, physicians and caregivers, we're expanding access to treatment so that every patient can receive their life-saving cell therapy. NMDP. Find cures. Save lives. Learn more at nmdp.org.
Jess Ayers
media@nmdp.org
1 NMDP, FY2020-FY2025 Annual Reports, nmdp.org.
