How to become a bone marrow donor and save someone's life

Why is bone marrow transplanted?

Bone marrow transplantation is transfer bone marrow cells to another person. This is often the only chance for people with leukemias, lymphomas, and some blood disorders. In the bone marrow are stem cellsthat give rise to healthy blood cells. They take root in the recipient's body with proteins of the immune system similar to the donor and restore normal hematopoiesis.

You can get tested for compatibility if one of your loved ones needs a transplant, or get into the bone marrow and hematopoietic stem cell donor registry. In the second case, it will turn out to save the life of a stranger.

There are several such registries in the country, usually they are available for large oncological and hematological centers. All data from them fall into the federal register: they are entered into a special database in which transplantologists will look for donors for their patients.

According to statistics National Research Center for Hematology in Russia:

• 29,000 people are diagnosed with diseases of the blood system every year;
• 1,500 patients annually require hematopoietic stem cell transplantation from an unrelated donor;
• only 0.1% of Russian residents were typed and entered the Federal Register of Unrelated Bone Marrow and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Donors.

Who can be a bone marrow donor

Submit a blood sample for registration Maybe a person between the ages of 18 and 40 who:

• is Russian citizen or has been registered in the Russian Federation for more than 6 months;
• does not have chronic diseases.

If suddenly the material fits some recipient, then the donor is examined for contraindications. These include various acute and chronic diseases, blood diseases, surgeries, pregnancy and other conditions. When it comes to transplantation, the priority is the health of the donor. If there are any risks, then there will be no transplant.

How to get into the bone marrow donor registry

You need to send the material to the register once, and it will remain there forever.

In order to become a bone marrow donor, you must leave an application, fill out documents and donate some blood from a vein or scraping cells from the surface of the cheek.

Submit your application

You can apply forpublic services» or contact one of the organizations that are engaged typing. For example, to one of the laboratories - project partners:

• "Invitro";
• KDL;
• DNACOM;
• cmd;
• MedLab Express.

The analysis in them is carried out for a symbolic cost of 1 ruble. Availability of the service is better to check with the administrator in advance.

Also pass blood is available in some hospitals and medical universities. For example, in the Russian Children's Clinical Hospital, National Research Center for Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Immunology named after D. Rogachev, Russian National Research Medical University named after N. AND. Pirogov.

Fill out documents

In order to take a sample from you, you need to sign an agreement to enter the register and consent to the processing of personal data.

Donate biomaterial

Usually need pass about 10 ml of blood is a standard tube for analyzes.

But you can also become a potential donor by mail: you leave an application in the registry, which accepts the material in this way, and they send a registered letter. The envelope will contain documents, two sterile cotton swabs and a test tube. You need to rub a stick on the mucous membrane of the cheeks - take a buccal scraping. The received material must be packed and sent back.

Wait for typing results

Biomaterial of a potential donor explore for human leukocyte antigen, or HLA. These are proteins found on the surface of cells throughout the body. If they turn out to be similar to the proteins of someone who needs a transplant, then most likely the cells will take root well.

What will happen next

And then you have to wait. The likelihood that your bone marrow fit, is only about 5%. Someone waits a couple of months, someone - 10 years, and someone never submits the material.

If in need of a transplant find «genetic twin" in the register, then "activation of the donor" occurs. The person is contacted by a registry officer who will guide at this stage. First, specialists exclude contraindications and clarify whether the donor is ready for transplantation.

After that, he again donates blood for HLA typing to make sure of a match, as well as tests to rule out viral diseases.

If everything matches - compatibility is confirmed, the donor agrees and he has no contraindications, then his are additionally examined, and after consultation with the transfusiologist, the date of collection is set material.

Where is the bone marrow taken from the donor?

Bone marrow can be taken from the pelvic bones or from a vein.

From the bones of the pelvis

Collection of cells with a large needle from the pelvic bones called exfusion method. It requires general anesthesia. The manipulation itself lasts about an hour, but after that you need to rest in the hospital for a couple of days. Now this method is used less frequently.

From a vein

A milder method is the apheresis method. Donor in a few days appoint drugs that force the desired cells to enter the blood from the bone marrow. After that, he is invited to the procedure. For 5-6 hours, he will sit at a special apparatus that will drive the blood away and take the necessary cells. Then you can go home.

Is it safe to donate bone marrow?

bone marrow donation exists for over 40 years. According to the European Group for Blood and Bone Marrow Transplantation, of all bone marrow harvestings by exfusion method from 1993 to 2005 year (and this is 27,770 cases) there was one death due to pulmonary embolism, as well as only 12 cases of complications on heart. So it's a safe move.

The US National Bone Marrow Donor Program attributes the main risk of complications to anesthesia. And the most common side effect is pain at the site of cell aspiration.

When using apheresis, side effects are associated with flu-like syndromes: bones hurt, the temperature rises slightly, the state of health worsens.

Is it possible to refuse a transplant before the procedure?

No. As soon as the donor agrees to a transplant, his recipient is prepare to transplant. To do this, his own circulatory and immune systems are killed by chemotherapy. If the transfer does not take place, then this person will die.