#BoneMarrowDonation

[drmeetkumar]

Did you Know?

After donation, bone marrow replaces itself within four to six weeks.

[mindfulpilateshongkong-blog]

Look what I’ve found😂🤣😂Guess doing Pilates was in my blood... and that I was always strong. @vivibearvivi you’ll be as strong after the BMT😘 I’ll be in your blood😉 #iwillcarryyou #lovemysister #beatinglukemia #againstallodds #cherish #yourfamily #loveyourlovedones #bonemarrowdonation #staystrong #behealthy #staypositivealways

[theneverspendingstory]

My bone marrow donation cheek swabs from @dkms_us came today! Bone marrow donations help heal patients suffering from leukemia, lymphoma, multiple myeloma, sickle cell disease, various forms of anemia and many other hereditary diseases. Did you know that about 70% of all blood cancer patients needing a bone marrow transplant aren't able to match with a family member? As many as 6 in 10 patients don't find a compatible donor! You can help!!! Head over to https://www.dkms.org/en/register to request your test kit. You simply swab each cheek and you're good to go! #swabselfie #bonemarrowdonation #dkmsus

[lifeafterleukemia-blog1]

Meet Apostolos Charitonidis, a formidable competitor from the Greek team who will be at the Official World Transplant Games​ in Malaga in June. CLICK on the link below for his story. #PoweredbytheGiftofLife #bonemarrowdonation #leukemiaawareness

[instapicsil1]

Be part of our Blood Drive & Bone Marrow Drive today at the Takiff Center. We’re accepting donations until 3 pm today! @giftoflifemarrowregistry @americanredcross #blooddrive #bonemarrowdonation #giftoflife https://ift.tt/2SJpkdj

[tukuhnikivats]

I'm officially in the bone marrow registry! Thank you @dexieluttrell for letting me know about it. #bethematchregistry #bonemarrowregistry #bonemarrowdonation https://www.instagram.com/p/BqJoUYgnAQ3/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=z5t1i7ok6d0b

[aldodepaz-blog]

The Moment I Was Told I Am A Possible Match For Bone Marrow Donation

The moment someone contacted me and told me a life is on the line and I can help I went through a series of emotions. Denial, fear, anxiety everything came to mind.  I questioned the validity of the person contacting me.  I denied its reality and came up with every justifiable reason why it was ok if i didn’t go through with contacting them back and following through on my donation.  After all it was nine years since i entered the bank and totally forgot all about it.  I heard that donating bone marrow was extremely painful.  I wanted nothing to do with it at first.  Two days went by and I didn’t contact the Blood center back.  I was nervous.  How can i say no?   How can i justify not going through with it?  

After two days of reflecting, meditation and discussing the matter with my family my entire thought process began to change.  My thoughts shifted to the person I was helping and then everything started to fall into place. There was a ten year old male dying of Leukemia.  That child has parents, family and loved ones that care for him. As a parent, I started to think of all the moments I had with my son. I thought of the moment he took his first steps, that moment I left him in the arms of someone else to care for at daycare. The moment he said his first words. I thought of all my moments with my son.

Then I started to think of the moments this ten year old little boy could be missing and how I can possibly provide hope in securing those moments for that family’s life should everything go well. That is why no matter how nervous I was, how scared I was, the thought of extending the moments for another family is what pushed me forward.  

I was ready to own the moment…

Would you donate bone marrow?  Why or why not?

[lifeafterleukemia-blog1]

#bonemarrowdonation #donatelife  #PoweredbytheGiftofLife  #marathon #run

[lifeafterleukemia-blog1]

#donatelife #bonemarrowdonation

[newtomarrow-blog]

Karmanos Cancer Center.

This is the point of the process where I need a physical and a physicians thumbs up to do the bone marrow transplant. 

And I got it! wahoo, the appointment was pretty long because it consisted of an EKG, chest x-rays, and more blood work, but after seeing a doctor at KCC everything looks swell and I am ready to go for my bone marrow harvest in August.

I thought all the medical stuff was going to be overwhelming.  Turns out, today was much more emotional than I anticipated.  I am rarely at the hospital so seeing many sick patients around me was hard and this place is a treatment center so a lot of people around me had cancer.

I checked in at the front desk. The gentleman looked at the paperwork I brought and I waited in the lobby.

There was a man sitting next to me with two women.  They saw my bethematch folder which I had in my hand and asked if I was donating.  I told them yes and then the man asked "is it for a relative?" I responded no, bethematch called me asking if I would be willing to donate and I said yes.  The man brought his two sisters to get tested to see if they are a match for him.  The doctor told him it is unlikely they would be a match, so if that is true he will depend on someone from the registry. I hope they find him a match.

I was called into the examination room where they took my vitals, took more vials of blood, and hooked me up to do the EKG.  Later, a nurse walked in to ask me basic health questions and then she asked "Are you a related or un-related donor"

"Unrelated" I said, she goes "Oh wow you're just really nice then, I always enjoy seeing unrelated donors come in here! your doctor will be in shortly."

My doctor came in to do my physical and explained the process of the bone marrow harvest.  The put me under anesthesia, take me to an OR where they make little holes on both sides of my hips where my pelvic bones are.  The little holes form a circle the size of a quarter and they stick the hollow needle in those holes and extract bone marrow.  Depending on how much they are getting from me the procedure shouldn't take more than an hour.

I asked a lot of questions about my doctor and made my way down to get x-rays.  While walking to radiology with the coordinating nurse we ran into the nurse practitioner who will be assisting in my marrow harvest.  She asked if I knew about the marrow recipient and she said "You're a hero".  Tears started to well in my eyes and she looks and me and says "You really are".  I think she knew what I was thinking.

Me? A hero? All I did was make the choice to join the registry. Science chose me to be a match.  It's almost chance that I was chosen to donate.  A lot of the nurses kept saying "this isn't an easy thing".

I guess in terms of driving, and making all these appointments, and signing paperwork it isn't "easy", but saying yes to change another person's life... easy.

My doctor told me I was very special, and compassionate.  She said she could see the excitement in my eyes when she cleared me to donate. Hearing those comments made me feel really good. She was right, I am very excited and I hope that my cells will put my patient towards a cure.

When it comes down to it. If I was on the other end, if I needed bone marrow, I would want someone to do it for me. I want someone to be a match for that man I met in the lobby, I want someone else to be a "hero".  I want people to realize how fortunate they are to be healthy and sign up for the registry.

[newtomarrow-blog]

The CHOICE to join the registry.

Please feel free to do your own research at bethematch.org! A lot of information I am going to talk about is also on this website and it does a really good job at answering all your questions.

I wanted to do something more. The most common cancer among children is leukemia. Leukemia is a type of blood cancer that begins in the bone marrow. Bone marrow is where blood cells are produced.  Many times a bone marrow transplant can bring someone with leukemia closer to remission or save their life. 

I decided to do research and joined the bone marrow donor registry.  It is EXTREMELY easy to join.  All you have to do is answer basic health questions, type in your mailing information, and be the match will mail you a cheek swab kit.  Once you follow the instructions and swab your inner cheek, you mail it back at no charge and you will receive confirmation that you are on the list!

They need everyone of every type. There are some things to consider before you register and decide to take that first step... they have all the FAQ's and such on the website, but let me put it to you this way.

If it was you who needed a transplant, or your mother, or your husband, or your best friend, or your child... you would want that perfect tissue match to be willing to donate.

And that is when I sent in my cheek swab kit.

[newtomarrow-blog]

Blogging?

New toMarrow is a blog I have decided to start to document my journey as a bone marrow donor.  I have come across some great resources and testimonials to help me through this process.  I have found that other people who have already donated their bone marrow have been beacons of positivity and really reassured me that this is something I want to follow through with. I hope that my raw thoughts as I continue through my bone marrow transplant as a donor will help others make the right choices and realize that it is alright to be nervous, excited, and anxious about the choice to save someone else's life.