Being a Rare Match

Photo By Senior Airman Natalie Doan | Senior Airman Nikko Foster, 374th Medical Support Squadron biomedical equipment technician, poses for a portrait at Yokota Air Base, Japan, August 3, 2023. Foster volunteered to be a bone marrow donor to help people with diseases such as leukemia, lymphoma, or cancer, and was selected as a match in January. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Natalie Doan)  

YOKOTA AIR BASE, TOKYO, JAPAN

08.03.2023

Story by Airman 1st Class Natalie Doan 

374th Airlift Wing

They didn't contact me directly.

I received a call from my sister in early January, who told me I had been selected as a bone marrow transplant candidate. It was completely unexpected. I remember thinking, "Wow, I was picked."

Two years ago when I was leaving class at my military tech school in Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio, a nonprofit organization called "Be The Match" hosted a bone marrow registration drive to help people with diseases such as leukemia, lymphoma, or cancer. A coordinator asked me if I wanted to sign up. Without much thought, I said, "Sure, why not?"

The coordinator took a swab of my cheek, had me fill out a few papers, and even gave me candy as a token of appreciation. They mentioned that being selected as a match for someone in need of a bone marrow transplant was rare, so I didn't dwell on it much. I simply thought, "If it happens, it happens."

I’d put my sister’s phone number down in case they couldn't reach me when I filled out the application. So, when they tried to call me directly, they got ahold of her instead. To be honest, it wasn't that I had forgotten about signing up, but it had just been such a long time that I didn't expect anything to come of it.

Now I had just a month to prepare because it did, in-fact, happen for me.

I visited the doctor for a physical and blood tests to ensure I was healthy enough for the donation, and booked a flight back to San Antonio.

Because the organization suggested someone watch over me should any rare complications arise, I reached out to my work colleagues to see if anyone was interested. I chose Anthony, a coworker who hadn't been back to the States in a while, giving him a chance to see his family after the procedure.

Together, we flew to San Antonio in early February.

Upon arrival, we checked into our hotel and rested, preparing for the five-day process ahead.

For four days, I had to go to the clinic to receive injections of a drug called filgrastim, which increases the number of blood-forming cells in the bloodstream—the same cells found in bone marrow. This turned out to be the most painful part of the donation process.

Thankfully, after receiving the injections, Anthony and I had the rest of the day to explore San Antonio and enjoy some much-missed American food.

On the fifth and final day, I received two more injections, and a nurse prepared me for the donation process. I was about to undergo a peripheral blood stem cell donation, which is a nonsurgical procedure.

In this PBSC donation, blood is removed through a needle in one arm and passed through a machine that collects only the blood-forming cells. The remaining blood is then returned through a needle in the other arm, replenishing the donor's body. While a PBSC donation can take up to eight hours, it took four hours for me.

As the machine filtered my blood, Anthony and I passed the time by streaming some TV shows while a nurse kindly brought us breakfast tacos. It was just the three of us—a nurse, Anthony, and me—in a large, circular room with sunlight gently filtering through the window shades, creating a surprisingly cozy atmosphere.

Although I don't know much about the patient who eventually received my bone marrow transplant, that doesn't matter to me. If they needed a second or third donation, I would do it again without hesitation. The procedure was a small price to pay for the chance to give someone else an opportunity to enjoy their life, even if they don't have much of it left.

Being identified as a biological match for a bone marrow donation is rare, and I'm immensely grateful that I could be that rare match to save someone's life.

• Date Taken: 08.03.2023
• Date Posted: 08.11.2023 01:57
• Story ID: 451075
• Location: YOKOTA AIR BASE, TOKYO, JP