My recipient is alive! She has encountered some side effects
of the transplant that are considered normal and is being treated for them. In
spite of these side effects, the doctors say her recovery is on track.
At this point in the recovery she should have returned home to begin adjusting to her “new normal” – as transplant survivors call it. The
risk of infection is slowly decreasing as her new immune system continues to
grow stronger. Her immune system should be fully functional around the one-year
post-transplant mark.
Bone marrow transplants are a brutal treatment that is
literally a last resort. To choose to undergo a transplant means you have
something to fight for. I hope she is surrounded by a strong and loving group
of family and friends who are supporting her on this journey back to full
health.
The next update will be in another few months, around the
one-year anniversary. At this point I will be able to re-join the registry and
will be able to donate blood again. Donors are temporarily removed from the
registry and are asked to not donate blood for a period of one year
post-donation. This is in the event your recipient needs another donation of
stem cells or other blood product you will be immediately able to donate (there
would be a waiting period of 8 weeks if you had just donated blood). I have
gotten out of the habit of donating blood and am very much looking forward to
being able to do that again.
The one-year anniversary is also the time we will be able to
make direct contact with each other (assuming each of us signs releases
allowing our information to be shared). I would very much like to know my
recipient’s story but am preparing myself for this to not happen. Sometimes
recipients (and donors as well) choose to not share their information. This is a highly personal decision and there is no right or
wrong choice. I respect my recipient’s wishes regardless of her choice.
I continue to volunteer with the Be The Match registry at
local donor drives. Each drive is different but the common thread is the
kindness present in the hosts, volunteers, and attendees. In a world where the
evening news is dominated by tragedies, it
is refreshing to know that love and unselfishness still exist - and dare I say even widespread?
