With the support of friends and church members on site at Signal Crest United Methodist Church, Saturday, May 3, will be dedicated to collecting samples to be registered through the National Marrow Donor Program as well as donating blood to Blood Assurance of Chattanooga.

According to the National Marrow Donor Program, registering a sample includes gathering tissue from the inside of the cheek with a cotton swab. The sample is then sent to the NMDP bank and tested for tissue type to find a match for the patient. If the tissue types are compatible, the sample donor will be contacted for further testing of blood tissue match.

Labels: bone marrow drives, Tennessee, US