Oct
Hello,
My friend, who has leukemia, is going to be put on the bone marrow transplant list next week. But I have a question. Can you go to get tested to see if you are a match, specifically for one person and so your name won't go through everyone who needs one? Or is it just through the registry? Please let me know.
Answer:
You can get tested, privatly. You’ll be paying out of pocket though. The ideal chance of a match is a full bloded sibling at 1 in 4, next a parent or child at 1 in 8. After that, the odds are very slim and most insurance companies wont pay to test anyone beyond that. You’ll need to coordinate with the patient's doctor to find out how and where to get tested privately. It will cost probably around a couple hundred dollars or more.
I comprehend reluctance to sign up for the national registry, but be aware that even if you are found to be a match to someone, you can still make the decision not to donate. And if youre reluctance to sign up for the registry is fear of the pain, you should also be aware that most donations today are actually peripheral blood stem cells (a type of white blood cell in the circulating blood) harvested by aphersis (the same proceedure as at the plasma centers and even some Red Cross donations).
I just want to add a note about the previous answer. While some people do use their own cells for transplant, it is not always recommended depending on the case.
Answer:
My husband and I were just at a bone marrow transplant physician and he said you can get tested but it is very rare for you to be a match unless you are related to each other.. Most bone marrow transplants are done with the cancer victims own stem cells. As long as the stem cells are still healthy after the chemotherapy.
We were told from our BMT physician it costs $25,000 to get marrow from a donor in the registry. Not many insurances cover the fee. That is why they try to do the stem cell transplant.
My husband has stage 4 Large B Cell Lymphoma and needs a bone marrow transplant. He’s going to Fox Chase in Philadelphia.
Answer:
yes