‘Nuclear families finding it difficult to get matching bone marrow donor’

KIMS Hospital marked a decade of bone marrow transplantations used in treatment of diseases related to blood cancer, sickle cell disease, and thalassemia.

Sharing insights at an event to mark the occasion in Hyderabad on Friday (September 5, 2025), Dr. Narendra Kumar Thota, head of the Hemato-Oncology, Stem Cell, and Bone Marrow Transplant Department at the hospital, said that finding a suitable donor has become increasingly challenging. In the past, large joint families often meant multiple siblings, making it easier to find a matching donor. With nuclear families being the norm now, it’s becoming harder to find donors within the family.

He said that advancements in medical science now allow bone marrow transplants to succeed even with only a 50% match. KIMS Group of Hospitals chairman Bhaskar Rao, CEO Abhinay, and others were present.