Japan has donated 125 bone marrow samples to 11 countries, including South Korea and the United States, for transplants during the past 11 years while receiving 129 from other nations in line with an international system for donating bone marrow, the Japan Marrow Donor Program said Saturday.
Expectations are growing that the system will make it easier for leukemia patients to find appropriate marrow donors beyond their national borders.
Domestically, the number of marrow transplants through the bone marrow banks has exceeded 6,000 since January 1993. But 300,000 donors need to be registered to meet demand.