Stem Cell/ Bone Marrow Donation

[SuperFemme]

Originally Posted by Spirit Dancer

Afternoon Cynbersuebee
The donation is actually very easy too, it only requires four daily injections to produce those wonderful little stem cells, then you're hooked up to an IV and they harvest them, it's about as painful as donating blood and is done in the same fashion as blood donation.
Now if they need the bone marrow donation that is a bit painful as they harvest from the iliac crest and it requires more. The plus side is around 95% are now done through IV harvesting. Yay for you on alomst the 3 yr mark

One afternoon or a few days of discomfort vs. saving a life?
That's not a hard decision to make.
Now that I know the pain that goes with the big "C"?
Even a needle in the hip bone to save somebody from that cannot compare.

[Toughy]

Yes, it's just a cheek swab to determine your HLA typing, however if you are a match it can be a very different story depending on whether it's bone marrow or peripheral blood stem cells (this comes from the FAQ of marrow.org website):

Q: How are bone marrow and peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) donation different?

A: Donating bone marrow is a surgical procedure done under general or regional anesthesia in a hospital. While a donor receives anesthesia, doctors use needles to withdraw liquid marrow from the back of the pelvic bone.

PBSC donation is a non-surgical procedure done in an outpatient clinic. PBSC donors receive daily injections of a drug called filgrastim for five days, to increase the number of blood-forming cells in the bloodstream. Then, through a process called apheresis, a donor's blood is removed through a needle in one arm and passed through a machine that separates out the blood-forming cells. The remaining blood is returned to the donor through the other arm.

[SuperFemme]

if i had pure marrow i would do it in a second.
but then, i am no stranger to bone marrow aspirations so it doesn't frighten me.

[Blaze]

Thank you Spirit Dancer for posting this thread. I went to work this morning. I talked with my CEO and she sent out a e-mail to everyone in our facility. I was so happy to see the response! We will be having a drive Tuesday. And at this very moment we have 64 people signed up to get there cheek swab, and yes, I had to explain to a few of our fellow employees that it's not the cheek that there originally thinking about
Finally our hospital has something to be excited about besides donating blood. Once again, what a wonderful Idea Spirit Dancer, now if I can get the other 39 associates to swab away!

[Spirit Dancer]

Originally Posted by Blaze

Thank you Spirit Dancer for posting this thread. I went to work this morning. I talked with my CEO and she sent out a e-mail to everyone in our facility. I was so happy to see the response! We will be having a drive Tuesday. And at this very moment we have 64 people signed up to get there cheek swab, and yes, I had to explain to a few of our fellow employees that it's not the cheek that there originally thinking about
Finally our hospital has something to be excited about besides donating blood. Once again, what a wonderful Idea Spirit Dancer, now if I can get the other 39 associates to swab away!

Blaze
Thank you and your co workers, such a wonderful gift
you all are giving.
Wishing now there were more drives for Bone Marrow and Stem Cell
what a great idea you had.

[Blaze]

Originally Posted by Spirit Dancer

Blaze
Thank you and your co workers, such a wonderful gift
you all are giving.
Wishing now there were more drives for Bone Marrow and Stem Cell
what a great idea you had.

On the contrary my dear. It was your posting that got me thinking that it would be a wonderful drive to do. We all give blood. It was now time to get my hospital co-workers to step it up and give more. So. It is you, that should get the applause and thanks!

[friskyfemme]

I had plannd to do this a couple of years after a news article published about a local guy needing a bone marrow transplant. However, during my procrastination, the young man died. I will never know if I could have been a match. Still wears on me. I didn't know there was a registry. Thanks for bringing this to my awareness. And stem cell donation!?
How does that work with live donors? Did I miss that?

[Spirit Dancer]

Link for Peripheral blood stem cell donation
http://www.stjude.org/SJFile/stem_ce...c_donation.pdf

One more important fact
Q: Who pays for the donation process?
A: Donors never pay for donating, and are never paid to donate.

All medical costs for the donation procedure are covered by the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP), which operates the Be The Match Registry, or by the patient's medical insurance, as are travel expenses and other non-medical costs. The only costs to the donor might be time taken off from work.

[Spirit Dancer]

So we all know the facts from myth


Myths & Facts about Bone Marrow Donation
Learn the facts about bone marrow donation to help you make an informed decision about joining the Be The Match Registry®.

MYTH:
All bone marrow donations involve surgery.

FACT:
The majority of donations do not involve surgery. Today, the patient's doctor most often requests a peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) donation, which is non-surgical.

The second way of donating is marrow donation, which is a surgical procedure.

In each case, donors typically go home the same day they donate.

MYTH:
Donating is painful and involves a long recovery.

FACT:
There can be uncomfortable but short-lived side effects of donating PBSC. Due to taking a drug called filgrastim for five days leading up to donation, PBSC donors may have headaches, joint or muscle aches, or fatigue. PBSC donors are typically back to their normal routine in one to two days.

Those donating marrow receive general or regional anesthesia, so they feel no pain during donation. Marrow donors can expect to feel some soreness in their lower back for one to two weeks afterward. Most marrow donors are back to their normal activities in two to seven days.

MYTH:
Donating is dangerous and weakens the donor.

FACT:
Though no medical procedure is without risk, there are rarely any long-term side effects. Be The Match® carefully prescreens all donors to ensure they are healthy and the procedure is safe for them. We also provide support and information every step of the way.

Because only five percent or less of a donor's marrow is needed to save the patient's life, the donor's immune system stays strong and the cells replace themselves within four to six weeks.

MYTH:
In bone marrow donation, pieces of bone are removed from the donor.

FACT:
No pieces of bone are taken during marrow donation. Only the liquid marrow found inside the pelvic bone is needed to save the patient's life.
http://www.marrow.org/JOIN/Myths_&_F...Don/index.html

[Spirit Dancer]

http://www.lightthenight.org/

[always2late]

Ten years ago, when I had my son, I had placental stem cells and cord blood harvested. If you, or anyone you know is pregnant, please encourage them to do so. Its a way to donate these much needed cells from something that usually just ends up in medical waste disposal.

http://stemcellumbilicalcordblood.com/

[Spirit Dancer]

Originally Posted by always2late

Ten years ago, when I had my son, I had placental stem cells and cord blood harvested. If you, or anyone you know is pregnant, please encourage them to do so. Its a way to donate these much needed cells from something that usually just ends up in medical waste disposal.

http://stemcellumbilicalcordblood.com/

Thank you for that link, I'd forgotten about cord blood.

[chefhmboyrd]

i did my swabs and sent them off
i would be glad to help someone out
@

[Spirit Dancer]

Okay so a good friend of mine pointed out that when
you go to the apply for the swab kit,
the myeloma foundation wil ask you
for money, it's asking for a donation.
You in no way have to donate to obtain a kit
just click continue to proceed and at the end process
it will ask again if you would like to donate,
you can opt out and you will still receive the kit.
After all the greatest gift you can give is simply
by being tested.
Thanks Wolfy for pointing this out

[Spirit Dancer]

Wanted to share this experience here, in case it may help
someone else out.
You are your family members best advocate, especially if they cannot
voice their issues or concerns at this time.
If they've been told all avenues have been exhausted and the only road left is clinical trial.
Know that if the doctors want to keep you on even low dose chemo,
that can diqualify you from most trials. Ideally they like you to be
on a rest period first then start your trial.
When a cancer patient is already struggling with their diagnosis and the issues related to it,
you the caregiver are their best advocate.
A journal and planner have been my best friend throughout this fight.

[Spirit Dancer]

*~Bump~*
It isn't painful, it's on the same principle of donating blood.
It can save a life

[Spirit Dancer]

Multiple Myeloma Prognosis
Multiple myeloma prognosis depends on several factors that influence the outcome of this cancer. The following article will cover some information on the life expectancy of patients suffering from this cancer.




Transplant Survival Rates Important Info For Transplant Patients - Before and After Surgery www.TransplantExperience.com




The cancer that affects plasma cells in the bone marrow is called multiple myeloma cancer. It is also known as plasma cell myeloma and Kahler's disease. Abnormal number of plasma cells accumulate in bones and causes bone lesions. These bone lesions occur in the bone marrow. This causes interference in the production of normal blood cells.

What is the Prognosis for Multiple Myeloma?
The prognosis is a type of medical opinion that helps a patient learn about the course of disease. It helps patients learn their chances of surviving the cancer and the odds of recurrence. The prognosis depends on several factors that help determine the chances a patient has. These factors are as follows: •The extent to which the cancer has spread (stages of multiple myeloma)
•Multiple myeloma grade
•Patients age
•Patients general health
•Response to treatment
The prognosis depends on these factors. The doctors base their prognosis on information that has been collected by researchers over the years. Each patient is different, so will be their prognosis.

Life Expectancy
It depends on the above prognosis factors. Other than that, it also depends on, if a certain immunoglobulin is present in the blood, kidneys are damaged and the response to initial treatment. The treatments aim for preventing or relieving symptoms. It also helps destroy abnormal plasma cells and reduces the rate of disease progression. Multiple myeloma is an incurable disease therefore one can only hope to keep the progression of this disorder in check.

Life expectancy is about 5.1 years, in case of stage 1. The life expectancy for Stage 2 is approximately 3 to 4 years and in case of stage 3 the life expectancy reduces to 2 years. The prognosis without treatment shows poor survival rate. About 15% of patients with this disease die within 6 months without treatment.

Different Types of Multiple Myeloma
Myeloma is classified into two types; inactive and active disease. The active disease requires immediate treatment as the typical symptoms are exhibited by the patient. The stage 1 and stage 2 of this disorder fall under the symptomatic or active disease. Inactive disease is asymptomatic in nature. The different subtypes of inactive disease include Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance (MGUS), Smoldering Multiple Myeloma (SMM), Indolent Multiple Myeloma (IMM) and stage I disease.

Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance (MGUS) is a condition where abnormal monoclonal protein is present in the blood. This condition is benign, and has no health complications. However, in some cases, the condition progresses to some form of cancer. The Monoclonal Gammopathy of Undetermined Significance prognosis shows the risk of progressing to multiple myeloma to about 1 percent per year.

Smoldering myeloma is a slow-growing type. It is an asymptomatic cancer that is seen in people with different types of myeloma. Certain white blood cells are affected, that causes them to make too much of monoclonal protein. The Smoldering Multiple Myeloma prognosis depends on the levels of plasma cells in the bone marrow and M protein in serum. Those patients with less than 10% plasma cells and more the 3 g/dL of M protein in serum show a median progression time of about 19 years. Those with more than 10% percent plasma cells and more than 3 g/dL serum M protein have a progression time of 2 years. However, there are chances that Smoldering Multiple Myeloma never reaches the symptomatic stage.

Indolent Multiple Myeloma life expectancy is calculated to about 10 years after diagnosis. The prognosis without treatment is said to be about 6 months. Stage I is comparatively very good, especially in cases where patient is young and healthier. The stage I multiple myeloma life expectancy is estimated to be about 62 months. Stage II survival rate is estimated to be about 44 months and stage II has a life expectancy of just 29 months.

With the advancement in medical technology, life expectancy for different forms of cancers is improving. Also, better palliative care and holistic multiple myeloma treatment approach is making lives of cancer patients better. The 5 year survival rate is about 35%. One should keep in mind as everyone is different, so is the prognosis different in different cases.

[sweetfemme247]

I just ordered my kit