As a Good Morning America addict I was shocked to hear that our dear Robin Roberts was facing a bone marrow transplant for pre-leukemia. As I follow her story I am so impressed with the way she is taking a very personal, painful struggle and using it for good. It is apparent that this is not easy on her, but heroes like Robin know that what's best and what's easiest are not always the same thing. Many cancer survivors can related to this desire to take something as dark as a cancer diagnosis and use it for good- she is doing just that, and doing it so well!
I would like to take this opportunity to join her in her mission to advance the cause of marrow donation...
As one of the fortunate ones, two of my siblings were deemed to be perfect matches...TWO (a brother and a sister).
I was truly blessed.
The docs determined that my sister would be the best choice. Asking her to donate was not easy. As the mom of 4 young children, and a foster parent, she had her hands full. With no hesitation she agreed to donate and did everything in her power to convince me it was no big deal. In fact, after all was said and done she confidently told me that she would to it again for anyone.
If anyone is considering registering but would like
more information on the process you can check out this link
http://marrow.org/Home.aspx or contact me. My sister or I would be glad to share our experience.
more information on the process you can check out this link
http://marrow.org/Home.aspx or contact me. My sister or I would be glad to share our experience.
You might be surprised to know that the bone marrow donation process has changed over the years and in most cases it no longer involves being anesthetized and having marrow extracted from the hip area. In my case, prior to the extraction of stem cells, my sister Tracey took medication to increase her body's production of stem cells. A few days before the transplant date (day -2, I believe) Tracey entered out patient surgery and had a temporary port placed in her chest (currently they may be able to use an IV instead of a port, making the process even simpler). On the day of the transplant she was hooked up to an apheresis machine.
apheresis machine
Her blood
was circulated through the machine (via the port), stem cells were
extracted and stored in the machine then the blood circulated out of the
machine back into her body via an IV in her arm. Shortly after that the bag of extracted stemcells (in the millions) were brought to my hospital room and given to me via an IV drip.
The whole process for the donor takes awhile...around 4-6 hours, I think. Shortly after the donation the port was removed from her chest by one of the medical team. That was it!
As I stated previously I was one of the fortunate ones...to have two perfect matches is nothing short of a miracle.
Imagine this scenario in your family-your loved one is stricken by a blood cancer with only one option for a permanent remission- a transplant. Imagine all family members being tested with no match. Imagine needing to rely on the kindness of a stranger to save your loved ones life. waiting...and waiting...
(The fact is that if you are of Caucasian descent the likelihood of your finding a marrow match is 80%.
If you are of minority descent your
likelihood of finding a match (all minorities as a group) is less then
30%...check out this link for statistics on ethnicity and bone marrow donation.
This scenario plays out daily in our country. It doesn't have to be this way.
Will you learn more about donating by visit this link? http://marrow.org/Home.aspx
Will you use your voice to encourage others to do the same?
If you are a cancer patient reading this blog and looking for a donor, or know of someone who is, I'd love to share your story. Just shoot me an email.
Together, we can all make a difference!
It's a matter of life or death...
