Join us in the fight against blood cancer!
Every 3 minutes, someone in the US is diagnosed with a blood cancer. For many patients, a bone marrow or stem cell transplant is the best chance for survival. However, because only 30% of patients can find a donor within their family, 70% must rely on a perfect stranger to donate. When you register as a potential donor, you take the first step toward providing a patient with a second chance at life.
The most common method of stem cell donation is peripheral stem cell collection (PBSC) in which your blood is drawn from one arm, passed through the apheresis machine to filter out the blood stem cells and return the remaining blood product back into your body through the other arm. To increase the number of stem cells in your blood flow at the time of donation, you will receive a 5-day course of a synthetic protein called filgrastim. Filgrastim signals your bone marrow to release more than average amounts of stem cells into your bloodstream.
Bone marrow donation is used in about 20% of stem cell donations. It is an outpatient surgical procedure performed under general anesthesia. Doctors use a special syringe to collect a volume of bone marrow, which stores blood stem cells, from the iliac crest of the hip bone. After the procedure, you will be sent to recovery and monitored. Once cleared by the physician, you will be sent home or back to your hotel on the same day. Bone marrow donation is more commonly requested by patients’ medical teams to treat pediatric cancers and certain forms of anemia.
You can learn more about the donation process here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3uNrosov3c
Click the “register for this drive” button to see if you are eligible to register as a potential lifesaver. A registration kit will be directly delivered to you. Your simple act could mean the world to someone in need, potentially saving a life.