A return to blogging...again

Once again, I must apologise to my readers (if there are any left), for the long break in posting. The reasons for that will be explained in a subsequent post. However, this does mark a return to my blogging and I will once again strive to keep regularly updating it.

You may ask why I picked today for all reasons for a return to blogging. Today, I participated in something that I hold close to my heart thus proving to be a catalyst for me to announce my presence on the blogosphere once again. Today, I voluntarily gave Bone Marrow for medical purposes. Why did I do it? Was it painful? What is the procedure? Will I do it again? Did I gain any benefit out of it, monetary or otherwise? All of these questions will be answered to some depth in this piece J, so do bear with me!!

Firstly, I must stress that I have not donated bone marrow as part of a transplant process. Unfortunately, I still have not been amongst the lucky ones asked to save someone's life in that manner and I sincerely hope that one day, I too will be able to wear that badge of honour. My donation, known as a Bone Marrow Aspiration, was part of a trial that is being conducted by the Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH) in conjunction with the Hanson Institute of the Institute of Medical and Veterinary Sciences (IMVS). The process itself took 15 minutes, with the total time being just over 2 hours. The process has been documented quite extensively on the web and although I lack the medical knowledge/expertise to explain it fully, I will give my personal account of what occurred. The first few steps of this action occurred in late April, wherein I volunteered to be part of this study, through a friend. The first visit to the RAH involved a standard blood test, to ensure that the blood was not infected with Hepatitis etc. Once this test was done, I was given a slot and asked to report to Day Surgery at that time.

Today, as I arrived, I filled in the regular paperwork and was asked to wait until a nurse came and asked questions related to my general health over the past 10 days, after which I was then escorted into Day Surgery and was "prepped". This involved changing into a surgical gown, and having 3-4 vials of my blood taken for further testing as part of the trial. After waiting for what seemed like an eternity, I was taken into the Operating Theatre, introduced to the surgeon who once again explained the procedures to me and asked me to sign paperwork saying that I had fully understood the procedures, accept the risks involved and consent to the operation as well as the results being used for the trial. After signing the paperwork, I was asked to lie on my side, marking the start of the procedure. It is after this that my experience wholly depended on what the hospital staff told me as the biopsy took place. First, the surgeon inserted a needle, causing slight pain, and applied local anaesthesia. From my understanding 2-3 vials of anaesthesia were used. After a few minutes, when it became apparent to me and the surgeon that the anaesthesia was working, a larger needle, known as the aspirate needle was then inserted into the same area. This is the needle which is used to "suck out" the bone marrow. The needle goes right into the bone, stopping at the marrow cavity. At this stage, a syringe is attached and the marrow is sucked out. This process of marrow extraction caused a sensation in the legs, accompanied by some pain. This pain however, reduced as repeated samples were taken. Once all samples were taken, the needles were removed, dressing applied and the operation was complete. I was then taken out of the theatre, allowed permission to get changed, and then asked to sit down, to allow my body recognise what happened. After 5-10 minutes of sitting down, the entire process was completed and I was then told that I could continue with my duties for the day.

In terms of pain, the answer is that the procedure IS painful. However, the pain is greatly reduced once the local anaesthetic is applied and the pain during aspiration is also reduced as further samples are taken. Once the local anaesthetic wears off, there is a pain in the hip, akin to the pain felt as part of a bruise in that area. I have been told that this pain shall reduce in 2-3 days. This pain did not preclude me from carrying out my work today and I see it just as a minor inconvenience.

The question then arises on why I would subject myself to this. I have been donating blood for quite some time now and have also been registered on the Australian Bone Marrow Registry, operated by the Red Cross. I have constantly wanted to be a part of the Bone Marrow donation process, as the chances of finding a match are extremely rare (some put it at one in a million). As I have yet to receive a call, the next logical process, in my view was to donate my marrow, so that it would help research into the science of haematology, which is

"the branch of internal medicine, physiology, pathology, clinical laboratory work, and paediatrics that is concerned with the study of blood, the blood-forming organs, and blood diseases."

Furthermore, the asian sub-continent population is very much under-represented in the bone marrow transplant process. India, for example, does not even have a Bone Marrow Registry. This article talks about the difficulties faced in finding an Indian donor (the website which is supposedly the Indian Bone Marrow Registry does not load). The numbers of both the donors and recipients are rising, but the rates are disproportionately stacked against the donors. Thus, even if any of my readers are able to register with their local hospital to be a bone marrow donor, I feel it would be an amazing step towards building a registry and helping our fellow human beings. Indeed, my main objective in doing the donation today was to give back to humanity for being extremely kind to me. I hope to be called for this once again and if the need arises for donating bone marrow for transplant purposes, I shall not bat an eyelid.

Finally, there was monetary compensation paid. However, that money shall go to charity. I have not earned one penny of that money, for I have not done anything but my human duty. I do not believe in being compensated for doing my duty and thus, that amount shall wholly go to a charitable organisation.

PS: A hat tip to my friend Reanu Gopal, who spoke to me about this and first planted the idea in my head! Thank you Reanu!