A Gift of Life - My Experience Donating Bone Marrow.  This past holiday season, I (Kristeen Singh) donated bone marrow for a seventeen year old boy with Leukemia. I was blessed to be given the chance to help him and potentially stop him from dying.  
It's a wonderful irony that I should be contacted to donate, as from '06 to '07 I worked at A3M (Asians for Miracle Marrow Matches, affiliated with the National Marrow Donor Program) as the South Asian Outreach and Recruitment Coordinator. In '06, I got hired and the first thing I did was register. In September of 2010 I was contacted by A3M and told I was a match. The recipient is the same age as my nephew, and I knew I would want to save my nephew, so of course I wanted the same for this boy. It feels appropriate that as a match, I am connecting everyone who has been in this fight to save patients’ lives. As a donor it feels like yes, we are doing it, and yes we are life savers.

When the blood tests confirmed a match, I felt, in a way, that I had won the lotto.  Yes, I was on the donor end, but here I was presented with an opportunity that, unfortunately at present time, defied the odds.  I’m not a religious man, but I do recognize the miraculous aligning of both circumstances and biological makeup when two people are successfully matched.

There was some soreness for a couple of days, but besides that, I had no problems. What was practically just a minor inconvenience to a day in my life made it possible for a young boy to live.

Darshana: With lot of support from my husband and my parents, I was ready to donate my marrow. One early morning, I went to the City of Hope to have the procedure. I was given general anesthesia and a small amount of marrow was extracted from my pelvic bone. I was sent home the next day and my marrow was sent to the waiting patient--a nine-year-old girl. She is a teenager now!

Anne registered in May of 2001. Five years later she received a call from the donor center informing her that she was a match. She said, “ It was really nice to know that I could possibly be able to help someone who is trying to survive”. Anne said as a potential donor, she answered the health history questionnaire and gave some blood to test before the actual donation. She said, “I never had any hesitation. If I had, I would not have registered in the first place. I think it is only fair to the patient, once you make that commitment to go ahead with the process if you are called”.

When people ask her about her donation she says, “It doesn’t matter. It was never about me, it was about that person who needed my help”.

Anne’s patient is doing well. She hopes to meet him some day.

Patty registered to be a marrow donor when she saw A3M’s booth at her son’s basketball game one day. A few years later when Patty was traveling, her husband informed her via email that she was a match for a patient. She felt very special that she could be the one to help another person. She was concerned about the patient so she immediately let the donor center know that she was willing to go ahead. Patty’s young children also encouraged their mother saying, “Do it mom, do it”.

On her return Patty went through some blood tests and donated her marrow a few weeks later.

I was excited when I received a call from the donor center. It was almost like winning the lottery. My family encouraged me to do it. I thought the technology and medicine is so advanced, so I had no concerns. In fact, I was praying for the patient.

A friend of mine was diagnosed with leukemia, so we did a drive since there were very few Japanese in the registry. That was the first drive. It was really not about me. It was about the patient. I felt like I had to do it.

When I donated my marrow, I almost felt like I was handpicked for this opportunity. For me it was a very spiritual experience. The earlier you register, the better it is.

I was interested in organ donation. So I thought, “Why would I not donate marrow while I was alive?” If I get a chance, I would donate again. One thing I would remember to do is to update my information so they can find me.

I registered because there were some free cookies and apple juice. I did not think I was going to get called. I thought this was a very uncomplicated way to save someone else’s life. My mother was very positive. She said, “Go for it.” For me it was a very fulfilling experience.