Have a question about being a bone marrow donor

[kster]

actually its for my wife, she is a potential match and would like to know the real ins and outs about donating.(Risks, pain and down time etc)

Thanks in advance for any input.

[WritingIsMyReligion]

1. I really can't tell ya anything,

but here's a kick.

:kick:

[LaurenG]

2. Here you go

http://www.marrow.org/DONOR/steps_of_donation.html

Marrow donation
Marrow donation is a surgical procedure. While you receive anesthesia, doctors use special, hollow needles to withdraw liquid marrow from the back of your pelvic bones. Many donors receive a transfusion of their own previously donated blood.

Side effects and recovery.
You can expect to feel some soreness in your lower back for a few days or longer. Most donors are back to their normal routine in a few days. Your marrow is completely replaced within four to six weeks.

Follow-up.
Your NMDP donor center coordinator will follow up with you until you are able to resume normal activity. You will also receive annual calls for long-term follow-up.

[kster]

3. Have you or someone you know ever done it

Thanks for the quick response.

[flamingyouth]

4. I know two people who've donated bone marrow.

Both of them said it was rather painful but that they were happy to do it (in one case the donee's cancer went into remission, I don't know what happened in the other instance).

[LaurenG]

10. I haven't donated but I would

should there be a need. It used to be very expensive just to get on the list and do the testing to donate.

[ForrestGump]

5. Well,

it hurts like an SOB, I'll tell you that. Just my luck that my bones are stronger than average -- the doctor was quite impressed -- because the oncologist had an inordinate degree of trouble getting that needle into the crest of my hip and (literally) ended up jamming me against a wall so that he could break on through to the other side. Funny thing, actually, that Ive got a bootleg recording of Elvis Presley talking about the same procedure, during a Vegas concert, and how the "sonofabitch" jammed him against the wall and held him down with his foot while "stabbing" him with a needle "thiiiiiiis long." So I think my experience is not uncommon for people with especially robust skeletons.

But when it's over, it's over, and I'd do it again -- without hesitation -- if I had cause to. The pain is profound, but largely localized...like you're being stung by a wasp the size of a small aircraft, really. I've had worse pain, for sure. But she should expect some degree of pain, depending on how easy the task is (how strong her bones are, especially) and how well any anaesthetic covers things...she may have an advantage in being a woman, because I get the impression that the average female has higher thresholds for certain types of pain than does the average male. I believe the risks are extremely minimal and the down time should be fairly insignificant. And, like I said, the pain fades...more quickly than some kinds of physical pain, too.

[Rabrrrrrr]

6. HURTS LIKE HELL, but vitally important,

and its worth the minor bit of pain to save someone's life. Pain is temporary and soon gone.

[XemaSab]

7. They want umbilical cord blood too

I'd be really marginal with the asthma.... I don't take steroids, but it's a close call sometimes whether I should.

[kster]

8. The wife Thanks you for the facts

from what it sounds like the pain you go through (especially as its for a 26 yr old) is worth saving a life. Knowing exactly what to prepare for helps her allot. Thanks

[KitchenWitch]

9. I can only speak to the pain of a bone marrow biopsy

which is also done at the crest of the hip. The hematologist that did my procedure was probably the single most insensitive doctor I have encountered in my life.

I had novacaine to deaden the skin locally, then they inserted a large gauge needle into the crest of my hip. The most painful part of the procedure is that I felt an excruciating pull all the way to the tips of my toes on the side being done. Ask for Versed as sedation for the procedure and it will go much better. I had no Versed and it was terrible (it did not help that the doctor was yelling at me.)

They put a compression bandage around the area, and the recovery was fairly rapid. My pain after the procedure was readily handled by ibuprofen.