Bone Marrow Transplant Drive: Donors Needed!
What: A bone marrow transplant drive
Where: Alaska Native Medical Center hospital main lobby in front of the gift shop
When: April 8-9 from 10 a.m.-6 p.m.
Why should I donate my bone marrow? Every four minutes someone is diagnosed with a blood cancer. Thousands of children and adults are affected by leukemia or other life-threatening diseases requiring bone marrow transplants to be cured. Stem cells are immature cells found in a bone marrow. In order to get stem cells from a healthy person and give them to a sick patient, the cells must be a good fit, or “matched.” Unfortunately up to 70% of patients do not find a matching donor in their own families. These patients need volunteers to donate their healthy stem cells in order to survive. Patients with a diverse ethnic background, such as American Indians and Alaska Natives, have a particularly hard time finding a match because the number of donors is so small. In fact, only 1% of Alaska Natives are registered bone marrow donors!
What does it mean to volunteer as a bone marrow donor? All we need is a cheek swab; no blood or needles involved! The cheek swab contains cells. Scientists can tell from this sample if your bone marrow cells may match someone else’s. They will enter your cell types into a registry and contact you if you are a match. However, this does not commit you to donating your bone marrow if you do match.
What if I match someone? If your bone marrow cells are a “match” for a patient, you have the opportunity to save a life! If you agree to donate you will either be asked to donate your cells or a portion of your bone marrow. For peripheral blood stem cell donation (PBSC) you will receive some injections to increase the number of cells in your bloodstream that are used for transplant. Some of your blood is then removed through a needle in your arm and passed through a machine and the rest is returned to you. In a bone marrow donation, anesthesia is administered and doctors will use a needle to withdraw liquid marrow from the back of your pelvic bone. Though no medical procedure is without risk, there are rarely long term effects from either procedure. Your cells will replenish themselves in 4-6 weeks. As a donor, you will be compensated for travel expenses and other non-medical costs. Plus, you can save someone’s life!
How do I sign up? Simply come to our booth between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Wednesday, April 8 and Thursday, April 9 at ANMC and fill out some paperwork. After screening we will show you how to complete the cheek swab. All donors will recieve a $5 ANMC coffee shop gift card as a thank you.
For more information on the drive please contact Beth Gustafson (907-212-5033 or elizabeth.gustafson@providence.org) or Anne Marie Bott 907-729-2143 or ambott@anthc.org.
For more information on bone marrow transplant donation go to www.bethematch.org or click here.