1. Turn to a Transplant When Other Treatments Fail
Doctors treat diseases caused by insufficient or defective blood cells with bone marrow transplants when other treatment options have failed. This procedure is commonly associated with cancer treatments, specifically for patients suffering from leukemia, lymphomas or myeloma. It's also an option for hereditary blood, metabolic and immune diseases. In a successful transplant, the new healthy marrow will replace and take over for the diseased marrow and start producing normal blood cells.
2. Find a Matching Donor
The first step in having a bone marrow transplant is finding a matching donor. The best place to find a match is in the family. An identical twin is your best bet, though other siblings have a 35 percent chance of also being a match. In some cases, the person in need of the transplant can be his own bone marrow donor if the disease is in remission when the marrow is collected or if the condition needing the treatment does not affect the bone marrow. This may be the case in breast and ovarian cancers, Hodgkin's disease, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and brain tumors. If a family member isn't eligible to donate, an international bone marrow registry can help you find a possible donor.
3. Suck the Marrow Out
Doctors remove bone marrow in a hospital under a general anesthetic by inserting a needle into the rear hipbone where the marrow is plentiful. The doctor then inserts the needle several times in both hips to get the needed amount of marrow, usually about 2 quarts. This is only 2 percent of the donor's marrow, and the body regenerates this in four weeks. Recovery time for this procedure is usually only one day. Harvested bone marrow is immediately used or frozen for future use.
4. Replace the Old With the New
Doctors remove the old marrow before they transplant the new marrow, using chemotherapy and/or radiation treatments for several days before the transplant. These treatments, done in large doses, leave the patient's immune system very weak. Unlike the harvesting of the marrow, the actual transplanting uses intravenous methods that don't require anesthetic.
5. What Happens Next?
The most crucial time comes after the transplant procedure is complete. Destroying the defective bone marrow with chemotherapy or radiation greatly damages patient's immune system. For two to four weeks after the transplant, the patient is unable to fight infections and may experience excessive bleeding. During this time, numerous transfusions and medications help the acceptance of the new marrow. The patient will be very ill with flu-like symptoms, and contact with other people is limited to minimize the possibility of infections. This entire process can take from four to eight weeks and is both physically and mentally exhausting.
