Breakthroughs for a cure

NMDP’s history is shaped by scientific breakthroughs and accomplishments, with the goal of creating a world where every patient can receive their life-saving cell therapy. Those breakthroughs have taken us from facilitating our first transplant in 1987 to celebrating our 100,000^th donor-recipient match in 2021, and beyond.

We’ve led the charge in research from the outset, with endeavors like the NMDP^SM Biorepository, one of the largest collections of research blood samples, and CIBMTR® (Center for International Blood and Marrow Transplant Research®), a collaboration with the Medical College of Wisconsin. CIBMTR has made once-novel procedures, such as blood stem cell transplants, commonplace—all in the pursuit of creating better outcomes for our patients.

When NMDP was founded, bone marrow donation, a surgical procedure, was the only option for providing cells to patients. We’ve been instrumental in advancing the use of peripheral blood stem cells (PBSC) as a viable treatment for those needing a blood stem cell transplant. PBSCs are donated during a nonsurgical procedure similar to donating plasma or platelets. Now, 90% of donations are done through PBSC collection.

In addition, extensive research and collaboration with our partners has allowed us to play an important role in standardizing PBSC collection procedures, ensuring consistency across collection and transplant centers worldwide. We continue to transform the landscape of blood stem cell transplantation, improving outcomes and offering hope to patients battling a wide range of blood cancers and disorders.

Not too long ago, Medicare would only cover blood stem cell transplants for a handful of blood disorders, such as leukemia, Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome and severe combined immunodeficiency disease (SCID). Through strategic partnerships with health care providers, advocacy groups and policymakers, we were able to successfully lobby for an extension to that coverage determination.

Now, under Coverage with Evidence Development (CED), the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has expanded coverage to blood stem cell transplants for myelodysplastic syndrome, sickle cell disease, myelofibrosis and multiple myeloma. This means transplants for these indications need to take place within a CMS-approved clinical study that meets federal guidelines.

This is a big win! The expansion not only addresses the financial barriers that often deter seniors from pursuing life-saving treatments but also fosters a more inclusive health care system that prioritizes the needs of vulnerable populations.

Our NMDP ACTL Solutions help transplant centers access high-quality services through our experienced partner labs. This ensures a transplant center can get the cells they need when they need them if their internal cell therapy lab needs extra support or doesn't offer the service. One example is cryopreservation, which allows the donor’s blood stem cells to be collected and stored for a specific patient prior to the patient’s transplant. It's a proven technique for ensuring the safe storage, transport and use of potentially life-saving blood stem cells. Cryopreservation helps make sure a product is available, so the transplant takes place when it’s best for the patient.

Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is a common side effect when a patient receives a transplant from a donor. It occurs because of differences between the recipient’s cells and the donated cells. We’ve been instrumental in advancing research on GVHD prevention and management to achieve better post-transplant outcomes. In fact, one of our clinical trials has shown promising results for an improved, preventative regimen for GVHD, opening up new opportunities to create an even safer recovery for transplant recipients.

Learn more about GVHD

Innovation is one of our strengths, and we never stop working to push science forward. One example is our groundbreaking NMDP Donor for All initiative, which will expand access to transplant through the use of partially matched donors. Donor for All includes studies like the ACCESS trial, which has led to the increased use of mismatched unrelated donors (MMUD)—directly contributing to the growth in the number of ethnically diverse patients receiving a blood stem cell transplant.

We also help emerging visionaries. With the Amy Strelzer Manasevit Research Program and other efforts, we support outstanding researchers early in their careers who are pursuing groundbreaking work to find solutions to the serious complications that can arise after transplant. These scholars are developing the treatment approaches that will extend the lives of the next generation of transplant patients.