That’s because our tissue types, they are inherited, so it’s much more likely that a Hispanic or a Latino will have a match from their own race [...] Hispanic or Latino patients have a 72 percent likelihood of having a donor on the registry who is willing and able to donate.

Mariana Sgarbi, president of the group Brazilian Mothers of Illinois (Mães Brasileiras de Illinois), explaining the importance of her work with the Icla da Silva Foundation, which recruits potential Latino bone marrow donors for the National Marrow Donor Program’s Be The Match Registry.