Bone marrow donation and running

tunney

I am NOT looking for medical advice. I am looking for peoples personal experiences of donating bone marrow and the short, medium and long term impact that it had on their running.

If mods aren't comfortable with discussion on this here can I ask people to PM me their experiences please.

Slogger Jogger

The odds are very slim of matching? I've been on a panel for many years. Best of luck to those concerned. I've donated platelets throughout the years and running thereafter wasn't impacted in any way. With bone marrow I daresay there will be more of an impact on the donor. No experience here though (not yet at least). Best wishes.

RayCun

I'm the same as Slogger Jogger, I've been giving platelets and on the bone marrow panel for years, without being called. From what I understand of it there's be a short-term hit because of the surgery but over the long term your body replaces the marrow that was taken - but I'd also be interested in hearing from someone who has been through it.

tunney

Cheers all.

And thanks for the emails of concern. I should have said that there is no real reason i am asking this, *touches wood*. I just heard of the difficulty of a friend of the family who is trying to find a bone marrow match and the statistical difficultly of finding a match. Just though I might put my name down and maybe someday help some randomer out. I give blood, why not this? (bar the pain and two weeks laid up).

Dotcomdolly

Well done tunney. As other have said you can be on the panel for years without being called.
It would be so worthwhile if you did turn out to be a match. It's a subject sadly close to my heart. I, or none of my family, were a match for my sister and near the end it was a "randomer" like yourself who was a near perfect match, sadly her health never improved enough for the op.

Hope you find some first hand info that will be encouraging.


I found this online

9. What are the short-term side effects?

If you're donating peripheral blood stem cells, the possible short-term side effects from the drug used to stimulate the production of stem cells include mild to moderate bone pain, muscle pain, headaches, flu-like symptoms, nausea and vomiting, and redness or pain at the injection site. These symptoms will normally subside 24 to 48 hours after making your donation.

You can expect to experience some fatigue after donating bone marrow. You'll likely also feel some soreness where the needle was inserted, which donors describe as being like the soreness that comes from hard exercise or a fall on the ice. Some donors also experience discomfort from the breathing tube used during the procedure.

These side-effects usually last for a few days, though some people may experience them for several weeks.

Many bone marrow donors are released from the hospital the same day they undergo the collection procedure. Most need to take several days off work and avoid strenuous activity for at least two to three weeks - which is approximately how long it takes to regenerate the donated bone marrow.

tunney

Dotcomdolly wrote: »

Well done tunney. As other have said you can be on the panel for years without being called.
It would be so worthwhile if you did turn out to be a match. It's a subject sadly close to my heart. I, or none of my family, were a match for my sister and near the end it was a "randomer" like yourself who was a near perfect match, sadly her health never improved enough for the op.
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Sorry to hear about your loss and thanks for the information.