What Is a Bone Marrow Donation?
Bone marrow is a soft spongy substance found in the center of bones. This substance contains stem cells responsible for making all the blood cells that circulate in our veins.
When donating bone marrow, the donor is admitted into a local surgery center and taken to an operating room. From there, an anethesiologist puts the donor to sleep and inserts a needle into the hip bone, at which point the bone marrow is extracted. After collection, the donor is moved to a recovery unit until they feel awake, alert and ready to leave the facility.
Is the Procedure Painful?
As the donor is asleep, there is no pain during the procedure. Following the procedure, donors may experience mild hip pain similar to a bruise after a fall.
What Is It Used For?
Researchers use the stem cells that are in bone marrow to develop treatments which repair damaged tissues, like the damange to the heart after a heart attack or skin damage after a serious burn.
