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Home > Donor Information > Steps of Marrow and PBSC Donation
Information on this topic is available in Spanish |
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Each year, thousands of people develop diseases treatable with marrow or blood stem cell
transplants. The National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP) has been a leader in
unrelated bone marrow transplantation for more than 10 years. Now, the role of
peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) donation as an alternative to bone marrow donation for
unrelated transplants is being evaluated under a research protocol accepted by the U.S.
Food and Drug Administration. The following is what you can expect if you volunteer to
donate stem cells through the NMDP.
1 |
The first step is to join the NMDP
Registry. NMDP representatives inform you about marrow and peripheral blood stem
cell (PBSC) donation processes. You complete a brief
health questionnaire, sign a
form consenting to have your tissue type listed on the Registry and provide a small
blood sample to determine your tissue type. Once listed on the Registry, your tissue
type will be compared to the tissue types of thousands of patients around the world
who need transplants.
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2 |
If you are identified as a potential match for a patient, NMDP Donor Center
representatives will ask for another blood sample to see whether you match well enough
to be an actual donor for the patient. If you are indeed a match, you will receive
further education about marrow and PBSC donation processes and which is the preferred
process for this patient.
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3 |
To prepare for either donation procedure, you will attend an information session
about the donation process and potential side effects of the procedure. You will have
a physical exam to determine your health status and to discover if there are any special
risks to you with either donation procedure. The health requirements are the same for
marrow and PBSC donation. |
4 |
You decide whether or not you will donate. After being fully informed about the donor
experience, you, with the support of your friends and loved ones, make the decision
whether or not to become a donor. |
Continue with Marrow Donation | Continue with PBSC Donation
marrow: |
5 |
The marrow collection process is a
surgical procedure lasting approximately one to two hours. The procedure occurs in a hospital operating room while you receive regional
or general anesthesia. Part of your marrow is removed from the back of your pelvic
bone using sterile needles and syringes. |
6 |
You should recover quickly from the procedure. Most donors have some bone pain and
aches for several days or a few weeks. Your marrow naturally replenishes itself within
four to six weeks. |
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pbsc: |
5 |
For a PBSC donation, you will receive
injections of Filgrastim for four or five consecutive days. Filgrastim is a
drug that increases the number of stem cells released from your
marrow into your blood stream so they can be collected through an apheresis procedure. |
6 |
During apheresis, which is done at a blood center or hospital, your blood is
removed through a sterile needle placed in a vein in one arm and passed through an
apheresis machine that separates out the stem cells. The remaining blood, minus the
stem cells, is returned to you through a sterile needle in your other arm. The number of
stem cells required by the recipient will determine if the procedure needs to be repeated the following day. |
7 |
Apheresis donors commonly experience bone and muscle pain, headache and fatigue prior to the donation procedure as a
result of receiving Filgrastim. These effects diminish over one to two days after the
last dose of Filgrastim is given. |
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After you donate stem cells, your NMDP Donor Center coordinator will
call you to follow up on your experience. Your coordinator will continue to call
you regularly until you are able to resume normal activity, and annually for
long-term follow up. |
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