Together against leukemia: Kick-off event on Wednesday May 7
Register now and become a potential stem cell donor for leukemia patients!
Kick-off event for numerous registration campaigns at FAU within the context of #FrankenFuerDasLeben
The Executive Board would like to invite all administrative staff and colleagues from the faculties and local companies to register in the DKMS database as part of the #FrankenFuerDasLeben campaign.
The kick-off event is on Wednesday May 7, 2025 from 11 am to 2 pm, at the new location of the FAU Executive Board and University administration (Freyeslebenstraße 1, Erlangen). It is possible to park on site in the FAU multi-story car park.
Why is stem cell donation so important?
Many leukemia patients fail to find a suitable donor in their family. Their only hope is to find a suitable unrelated donor with the same tissue characteristics. The more people are registered in the databases, the higher the chance of a successful match and a potential cure. Under the guidance of Prof. Dr. Andreas Mackensen, Director of Hematology and Oncology at Universitätsklinikum Erlangen, FAU hopes to find as many new stem cell donors as possible and to raise awareness of the importance of typing.
Donor drive at FAU
With this event, FAU is launching a major initiative in the fight against leukemia, with all students, staff and researchers being encouraged to attend any of the numerous donor drives we are organizing at the faculties and institutions in summer semester 2025. “Join us in our mission to tackle this terrible disease and save lives together. It only takes a few minutes for you, but for other people it may make the difference between life and death,” underlines President Prof. Joachim Hornegger.
Dates of the DKMS donor drives:
- May 7 from 11 am to 2 pm: Kick-off event and donor drive at Freyeslebenstraße 1, Erlangen
- May 16 from 2:30 pm to 4:30 pm at the Roter Platz at the Faculty of Engineering, Erlangen
- May 20 from 1 pm to 4 pm during the teddy bear hospital in Schlossgarten, Erlangen
- May 27 from 1 pm to 4 pm in Nägelsbachstraße, Erlangen
- May 28 from 9 am to 12 pm at the Faculty of Medicine at Ulmenweg 18 in Erlangen
- June 2 from 1 pm to 4 pm in the foyer of the chemistry building, Chemikum, Erlangen
- June 12 from 11:30 am to 2:30 pm at Juridicum, Erlangen
- June 28 with a special campaign at the Schlossgartenfest
Events will also be held at the Regensburger Straße Campus in Nuremberg, in front of Audimax in Bismackstraße in Erlangen, at the WiSo Campus in Findelgasse in Nuremberg und at the new AIBE building.
As well as registering as a stem cell donor, it is also possible to make a cash donation directly at the donor drives. Each new registration costs 50 euros and every donation helps, as not everyone can bear the costs themselves.
#FrankenFuerDasLeben is a society-wide and regional initiative under the patronage of Bavarian Minister of the Interior Joachim Herrmann. Together with other partners from the region, including Sparkasse, Nürnberger Versicherung and Datev, FAU is striving to implement the largest typing drive of its type in Germany.
What happens during a donor drive?
During a donor drive, volunteers can register as potential stem cell donors.
First of all, you have to complete a consent form. Next, a swab is used to take a sample from inside your cheek. This sample is sent to the laboratory to analyze HLA markers. For a stem cell donation, people are required to have matching HLA (human leukocyte antigen) markers. As there are several thousand varieties of these markers in innumerable combinations, the likelihood of finding a “genetic twin” is extremely slim. Each registration therefore helps to find the “needle in a hystack” and gives people across the globe hope.
Detailed information: www.dkms.org/get-involved/become-a-donor