To find out what that title means, you're going to have to, er, "climb over the balcony" and go to Open Mouth, Insert Fork. You'll also get to read about the batch of Julienne's Graham Cracker Chewy bars that I baked for my doctor and staff at the City of Hope. They were a big hit.
While I was at yesterday's appointment, I found out an interesting tidbit from my doctor, who is not only the chair of the hematology department at CoH but also literally wrote the book on bone marrow transplantation.
I asked him what determines if the donor gives bone marrow (from the hip, 20% of cases) or stem cells (from peripheral blood, 80% of cases). The answer was simple. Children require bone marrow, not stem cells for a successful transplant. Interesting, huh.
Many potential donors confess that they're willing to donate stem cells through their blood, but aren't sure if they could undergo the minor surgical procedure of removing bone marrow through the hip. I hope the fact that the life-saving bone marrow would go to a child would make a difference in that person's decision.
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8 comments:
ooooh, can't wait to see the treats, heading over there right now, I totally forgot about that wonderful page of yours, been there once... :)
Hello Susan, am new to this blogging but already am hooked. I got onto your site by default but you are an inspiring woman and I look forward to reading from you whenever you have the time. (I also plan to bake your cookies too, thanks. (All the way from Melbourne, Australia).
Glad to have you back. I know you weren't gone long, but I check in every day...so , it seemed long to me.
Thanks for the post and the information on the difference between stem cell and hip marrow usage. Hopefully, one day soon we will no longer see a need for bone marrow transplants in children because pediatric cancer will be eradicated.
Then us next. :-)
Mari, I know you love food, so, please, climb over the balcony.
Jen, Welcome! I seem to have a few down-under followers. I just peaked at your profile, and we seem to have a lot in common, including our, ahem, age.
Sue, You're a dear! Yes, wouldn't it be wonderful if there was no longer a need for stem cell or bone marrow transplants?
We have hope in hope.
Hi Susan--here's the link to the joint blogging effort on this topic:
http://www.assertivepatient.com/2009/06/how-many-blogs-do-you-have.html
Cheers, Jeanne
Susan--do you read Chinese? I think that one message is a dirty message in Chinese. Just guessing ...
That's so funny because I don't know if I would want the injections of GCSF prior to Stem cell collection as opposed to getting all done in one shot with bone marrow. I haven't had to decide because I've never been a match, but I am still waiting.
And for Sue- pediatric luekemia has a 70% cure rate!
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