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| With John in August 2009 |
When John was diagnosed with Lymphoma, his family looked into
the option of a bone marrow transplant. While his family went through the
testing process to see if any of them were matches, a number us on the
sidelines submitted our information to the Be A Match bone marrow registry out
of support and encouragement. Naturally, I hoped that somehow I would turn up
as a perfect match for John. I knew the likelihood of that actually happening
but what a physical way to show your love and support by giving your best
friend bone marrow! Then we really would be connected in a way beyond
friendship. Even though the reality of one of us matching John was slim, we saw
the importance of a patient being able to find a match. Bone marrow donation
saves lives – it is often a last resort treatment and provides hope and health
for many people who will die from cancer. The opportunity to maybe possibly
help someone survive this terrible illness by simply signing up is one of which
we should all take advantage.
When one signs up to donate bone marrow, the process could not
be more simple. Often times, friends and family of lymphoma or leukemia
patients will hold a drive to advocate the bone marrow registry, make people
aware of the process and allow them to sign up. Or, you can go to www.marrow.org and click “Join the Registry.”
They will ask you some questions regarding health and personal information and
then allow you to order a registration kit. By order I do not mean pay –
everything with the process from signing up to the pain pills after the surgery
is free of charge to a donor. The registration kit is simply a pair of large
q-tips that they ask you to swipe inside your cheek. The cheek cells collected
on the q-tip is enough for the registry team and system to establish your
tissue type. You simply mail the completed kit (no postage payment either!)
back to Be the Match and they take it from there. Your information is inputted
into the registry of over 20 million donors, world-wide. Doctors can then do a
massive search of all donors to find the best matches for their patients.
In April 2012, I was contacted by Jamie who would soon become my
advocate and coordinator for the donation process. She introduced herself,
stated that I had previously signed up to donate bone marrow through Be the
Match, and have been initially matched to a patient with leukemia – would I
still be interested in donating? After a brief attack of many different
emotions, I said yes. What have I gotten myself into? What are the risks to
myself in going through this process? Why couldn’t this call have happened
three years ago saying I matched John?
Jamie informed me that they would need further information to
see if we are more than just initial matches but that it could take weeks or
months to know for sure. Like I’ve said, the chances of actually being able to
match and donate are similar to those of winning the lottery. The cheek
collection gives enough info to do an initial connection but blood tests,
health records, etc confirm whether a patient and a donor are compatible or
not. I went that week to have about 7 tubes of blood drawn that were then sent for
testing and examination. I filled out an online questionnaire asking a number
of questions about my personal health, family health records, lifestyle, etc.
Lots of information and blood tested, yes, but it is all done with the
intention of making the best and most accurate match. The entire process is
aimed at both the health and safety of the patient and the donor – they wanted
to ensure that I could not only be compatible with my patient but that the
surgery and donation would not put me at any risks. FYI, a potential donor
should be aware of the possibility that unknown disorders, diseases, or other
health problems might be detected in the research process. It is the
responsibility of your coordinator (Jamie in my case) to inform you if anything
comes up irregular. I was a bit frightened that some unknown blood disorder or
other disease would come up in my blood work – I am paranoid like that. But, fortunately,
nothing irregular came up.
In fact, I never heard back from Jamie concerning the donation
until August. She was calling to say that I was one of two matches for my
patient. I was second choice meaning that if the first donor did not work out,
I would be contacted. Am I still interested? Yes, very much so I replied.
Another six weeks passed before hearing from Jamie. This was THE call saying
that I am THE match, am I interested, and get ready because it moves fast from
here on out!
Again, I was excited, nervous, overwhelmed, anxious, and grateful
that I was healthy enough to be able to do this for someone in need. I was, and
still am, in awe of the blessing of good health that I have. My health is
something that not everyone experiences – and I was able to share a small bit
of my blessing with a complete stranger. Y’all, that is cool! I hope that more
people take advantage of that opportunity! It is a complete miracle and wonder
that someone’s tissue and blood can match so exactly to another’s allowing the
patient’s bone marrow to be replaced and replenished.
My next post will be about my experience from that call telling
me I am THE match until now, one week after the donation. Already wanting to
sign up? See www.marrow.org and get the
collection kit sent to you! Literally, you just swab the inside of your cheek
and send the kit back to the organization. So simple and, yet, potentially so
monumental for someone in need!
