944th FW hosts bone marrow drive today

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Marcy Copeland
  • 56th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
LUKE AIR FORCE, Arizona --  The 944th Force Support Squadron will be holding a bone marrow drive between 8 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. today at the 944th Fighter Wing Conference Room.

According to bethematch.com, more than six people die from a blood cancer every hour. Every three minutes, someone is diagnosed with a type of blood cancer. That's 20 people every hour, 480 people every day.

Leukemia, non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Hodgkin lymphoma and multiple myeloma are just a few types of blood cancers also known as hematologic cancers. These cancers affect the production and function of blood cells and start in the bone marrow where blood cells are produced for the entire body.

According to the American Society of Hematology, the normal blood cell development process is interrupted by uncontrolled growth of an abnormal type of blood cell. These cancerous cells prevent a person's blood from performing its normal functions like fighting infections or the ability to clot.

Chemo and radiation therapy can be used to treat blood cancers, but one of the most effective treatments is a stem cell or bone marrow transplant.

The process of volunteering is not what many may think and involves no needles or medical procedures. Participants fill out paperwork and receive an explanation of how the program works. Packets are given to each volunteer containing information and educational materials to inform families of their decisions to donate if matched with a recipient.

A swab sample is taken of a person's mouth, sealed for transport and sent to the nationwide donor registry where it is analyzed and hopefully matched to someone in need of a donation.

If matched a person travels to where the patient is and is tested further. The actual procedure of removing bone marrow is done under anesthesia, so the donor is not awake for the procedure. A large needle is used to extract the marrow from the pelvic bone. The procedure is usually done early morning and the donor can leave that evening or stay overnight for observation and go home the next day. The hip area will be sore for a few days, but it will pass and the donor's body will produce more bone marrow.

All expenses including travel, hotel and medical bills are covered and the donor can leave knowing that less than 10 percent of the bone marrow will help to save a life.

The bone marrow drive is sponsored by Salute to Life and is being organized by Kimberly Branche, 944th FSS Human Resources technician.

"Last March I was diagnosed with multiple myeloma which is cancer of the plasma cells," Branch said. "That is what pushed me out there. I felt I was given a purpose in life. I knew this didn't happen just to happen. My own personal journey with this disease is what started this and made me want to educate the people around me."