Overview

• Maximilian Beier publicly enrolled with the Deutsche Stammzellspenderdatei as a potential stem-cell donor and is fronting a national awareness campaign.
• The 22-year-old says he wants to use his reach to help save lives and encourage others, especially younger people, to register.
• DSD emphasizes that someone is diagnosed with blood cancer globally every 27 seconds and that for many patients a transplant is the only chance of survival.
• Registration involves a simple cheek swab mailed to DSD, with prospective donors contacted only if a genetic match is identified.
• Borussia Dortmund backed the effort with a photo shoot at Signal-Iduna-Park, and DSD chief Maike Hornberg thanked Beier and expressed hope his example will inspire sign-ups.