What is the donation procedure?
Adult donors undergo one of two procedures: • Marrow donation • PBSC donation Risks and side effects depend on the procedure used. Marrow donation This is a surgical outpatient procedure. While donors receive anesthesia, doctors use needles to withdraw liquid marrow from the back of the pelvic bone. The donor’s marrow completely replaces itself within four to six weeks. After donation, donors can expect to feel some soreness in the lower back for a few days or longer. Most donors are back to their usual routine in a few days. PBSC donation This is a non-surgical outpatient procedure. Donors receive daily injections of a drug called filgrastim for five days before the collection, to increase the number of blood-forming cells in the bloodstream. Then through a process called aphaeresis, a donor’s blood is removed through a needle in one arm and passed through a machine that separates out the blood-forming cells. The remaining blood is returned to the donor through the other arm. Donors m
