Celebrating 5 Years of Impact

DKMS Africa marks five years of impact and progress

March, our anniversary month, also coincides with Human Rights Day, a time to reflect on dignity, equality and the fundamental right to life. While this right is protected in South Africa’s Constitution, for patients with blood cancer and blood disorders, access to life-saving treatment remains closely linked to the systems and support structures that make it possible.

Five years on, DKMS Africa continues to play a role in strengthening that system.

Building a more representative donor registry

Five years ago, when DKMS joined forces with The Sunflower Fund, the goal was clear: to build a larger, more diverse stem cell donor registry that better reflects South Africa’s population and improves every patient’s chance of finding a match.

At the time, both awareness of stem cell donation and representation within registries posed significant challenges. Today, the progress is measurable and meaningful.

The DKMS Africa registry now includes more than 170,000 registered donors in South Africa and forms part of a global network of over 13 million potential donors.

Representation remains central to this progress. Today, 61% of our registered donors are people of colour, making DKMS Africa the most diverse stem cell donor registry in the country.

This growth has helped strengthen patients’ chances of finding a suitable match. Because matching is based on inherited genetic markers, a more diverse registry directly improves the likelihood of patients accessing life-saving treatment.

Turning growth into impact for patients

While expanding the donor registry remains essential, it is only part of the solution.

Over the past five years, DKMS Africa has worked to improve access to the transplant process itself. This includes supporting 1,491 patient HLA typings, 1,153 family typings and 700 confirmatory typings, helping to remove key barriers that previously prevented many from entering the search for a donor.

This work ensures that more patients are not only represented in the registry, but are also able to begin the process of finding a matching donor.

Recognition on a global stage

In 2025, DKMS Africa achieved certification from the World Marrow Donor Association (WMDA). This milestone reinforces the organisation’s commitment to global standards of excellence and further establishes its position as South Africa’s largest and most diverse stem cell donor registry.

Celebrating five years of impact

To mark this milestone, DKMS Africa hosted a special movie night under the stars at Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens in Cape Town, bringing together partners, patients, families and advocates.

The event created a space to reflect on the journey, recognise the collective effort behind the progress made, and celebrate the impact achieved over the past five years.

Events like this serve as a reminder that behind every registration is hope for someone still searching, and that progress is made possible through collaboration and shared commitment.

Looking ahead

Looking ahead, DKMS Africa continues to focus on strengthening the donor registry and improving access to transplantation, recognising the role these play in addressing gaps in patient care.

As DKMS Africa marks five years of impact, the focus remains on building a stronger, more representative registry, advancing access to transplantation and continuing to support the right to life for patients across the country.

About DKMS

DKMS is an international non-profit organization dedicated to the fight against blood cancer. It was founded in Germany in 1991 by Dr. Peter Harf and DKMS together with the organization’s over 1,200 employees and has since relentlessly pursued the aim of giving as many patients as possible a second chance at life. With over 13 million registered donors, DKMS has succeeded in doing this more than 115,000 times to date by providing blood stem cell donations to those in need. This accomplishment has led to DKMS becoming the global leader in the facilitation of unrelated blood stem cell transplants. The organization has offices in Germany, the US, Poland, the UK, Chile, and South Africa. The organization has offices in Germany, the US, Poland, the UK, Chile, India and South Africa.

DKMS is also heavily involved in the fields of medicine and science, with its own research unit focused on continually improving the survival and recovery rate of patients. In its high-performance laboratory, the DKMS Life Science Lab, the organization sets worldwide standards in the typing of potential blood stem cell donors.

DKMS Africa received its WMDA certification in 2025, cementing its position as South Africa’s biggest and most diverse stem cell donor registry.

For more information, go to https://www.dkms-africa.org