As the University and Community Outreach Coordinator for Swab The World, Kareem Hamid is helping lead a national movement to make lifesaving medicine more equitable. Swab The World is a Canadian non-profit working to diversify the global stem cell registry so that every patient — regardless of ethnicity — has a fair chance at finding a compatible donor.
Describe your charity/non-profit/volunteer work in a few sentences.
Swab The World is a non-profit dedicated to diversifying the global stem cell registry so every patient has a fair chance at finding a lifesaving donor. Our work focuses on advocacy, education, and recruitment — particularly among underrepresented BIPOC communities who face the lowest odds of finding a match. Through campus chapters, community events, and national awareness campaigns, we mobilize students and young leaders to swab their peers, share their stories, and build a more equitable healthcare system.
What problem does it aim to solve?
We’re all created equal, until blood cancer strikes. That’s because a stem cell transplant — often the only treatment option for many types of blood cancer and blood diseases — requires a donor with the same ethnicity. However, about 70% of registered stem cell donors are white, while roughly 85% of the world’s population is not — leaving BIPOC patients battling blood cancers and disorders at a significant disadvantage when searching for a match. Swab The World exists to address this inequity by recruiting more diverse donors and raising awareness. Our mission is to close this gap so that every patient, regardless of ethnicity, has an equal chance at survival. Equal cancer, equal fight.
When did you start/join it?
Swab The World was founded in 2018 by Mai Duong, a Vietnamese-Canadian mother and communications professional who became the face of ethnic underrepresentation in the stem cell registry. In 2014, while pregnant with her second child, Mai was diagnosed with leukemia and told she needed a stem cell transplant to survive. Like many BIPOC patients, she quickly learned the odds were stacked against her: with 70% of registered donors being white, her chances of finding a compatible match were devastatingly low, with just 16% of registered donors being of Asian ethnicity.
Refusing to accept that reality, Mai drew on her background in advertising to launch the Save Mai Duong campaign — a movement that went viral, mobilized thousands, and ultimately helped her find a donor in time to save her life.
Out of that life-or-death experience came Swab The World, a nonprofit dedicated to ensuring no patient faces the same inequity. The mission is simple but urgent: diversify the global stem cell registry so that every patient, regardless of ethnicity, has a fair chance at survival.
What made you want to get involved?
Like many students who have mobilized around this cause, I was first drawn in by Mai’s passion, energy, and captivating story. She visited my classroom at Toronto Metropolitan University back in January, and her words left a lasting impression. When I later saw that Swab The World was hiring over the summer, I knew immediately this was the work I wanted to pursue after graduating.
Throughout my undergraduate years, I was deeply involved in the social impact space, and joining this movement felt like the most meaningful next step — a way to turn that passion into action with real, life-saving impact. Since then, I’ve been leading the charge in Ontario, engaging post-secondary students, building chapters, and — most importantly — swabbing.
What was the situation like when you started? How has it changed since?
When Swab The World began in 2018, it was just an idea sparked by Mai’s personal fight with leukemia and the urgent need to address inequity in the stem cell registry. Awareness of the issue was low, and very few young people — especially from diverse backgrounds — were being mobilized to register as donors.
Today, Swab The World has rapidly expanded into a national movement. We mobilize hundreds of student volunteers every year across Canadian universities, and since launching we’ve redirected over 10,000 people to their local stem cell registries through our website. We’ve also supported 45 patients through national campaigns to help them find compatible donors, while securing more than $6 million in pro bono media visibility thanks to our partners. What began as one woman’s fight has become a growing global movement — and the momentum is only building.
What more needs to be done?
While we’ve made tremendous progress, there’s still so much more to do. The stem cell registry continues to lack the diversity needed for all patients to have an equal chance of survival. Increasing representation among BIPOC communities remains our most urgent priority, which means deepening partnerships with cultural groups, expanding campus chapters, and tackling misconceptions about stem cell donation.
How can our readers help?
The simplest way to help is to swab and join the stem cell registry — one quick cheek swab could be the difference between life and death for someone searching for a match. If you’re between the ages of 18 – 35 and in good health, you can register online and receive a kit mailed to your door.
Beyond registering, you can help by spreading the word: talk to friends and family about the importance of diversity in the registry, share our campaigns, and invite us to collaborate with your school, workplace, or community group. Every conversation helps us reach someone new.
For students, you can get directly involved by joining or starting a Swab The World chapter on your campus — helping to organize swab drives, build partnerships, and raise awareness. Together, we can make sure every patient has an equal chance at finding their match.
You can also support our mission by donating. Swab The World is funded solely by donations, and with your help we’re able to reach millions of potential matches for blood cancer patients around the world. Every contribution directly fuels awareness campaigns, swab drives, and student chapters that bring us closer to a diverse global registry.
Do you have any events coming up?
You can find all upcoming events on our website, which is updated every Monday.
Where can we follow you?
Website | Instagram | Facebook | LinkedIn
PAY IT FORWARD: What is an awesome local charity that you love?
A great local charity that we at Swab The World deeply admire is Leucan. For over 45 years, Leucan has been dedicated to supporting children with cancer and their families. In addition to funding clinical research, the association offers a wide range of specialized services, including personal assistance, emotional support, financial aid, referral services, massage therapy, playroom staff, socio-recreational activities, the Leucan Information Centre, school awareness programs and support, as well as palliative care and bereavement follow-up.
