The Health Administrative Council, through the Health Service, Hemotherapy at the Municipal Hospital “Dr. Héctor M. Cura”together with the group Olavarría Da Vida, scheduled a external blood collection of voluntary donors and registration in the bone marrow donor registry.
The activity will be held at the Atlético Club Sierra Chica (Legorburu 2130), the next September 25th from 8:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The event will be attended by Club staff as well as the educational community of School No. 17 in the town.
To participate in the event, a reservation is required: interested parties can call 2284-561466 (Prof. Loana Sanabria, School No. 17) or 2284-507116 (Sandra García, Olavarría Da Vida).
To donate blood, you should not be completely fasting. It is essential to avoid sugary infusions, drinks and/or fruit. Dairy products and flour should not be consumed before donating blood. Donors must weigh more than 50 kg. You cannot donate blood if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.
You must be in good health, not have had unprotected sexual relations with casual partners, not use intravenous drugs, not have had surgery, piercings or tattoos in the last 12 months, be between 18 and 65 years old to donate blood and between 18 and 40 years old to donate bone marrow (bring ID).
Donation of Hematopoietic Progenitor Cells: CPH (Bone Marrow)
At this moment, in any part of the world there is a person waiting for a bone marrow transplant from a donor who is 100% compatible, in order to recover their health or even to continue living. Compatibility occurs in only one in 40,000 people. Certain diseases such as leukemia, lymphomas, severe combined immunodeficiencies, etc., require a bone marrow transplant. Only one in four patients, if they require this transplant, has a compatible donor within their family group. The other three need to resort to an unrelated donor.
To determine if there is compatibility, a blood sample is analyzed to study the genetic code of the cells in relation to that of the potential recipients. It is difficult to find a compatible donor for a specific patient, which is why registries that group thousands of donors are required for the search to be successful.
At the national level we have the National Registry of CPH Donors (hematopoietic progenitor cells – which are produced in the bone marrow). This registry operates within INCUCAI, created by Law 25,392, which established it as the entity in charge of incorporating voluntary donors of cells to be used in transplants.
The list is also part of the international Bone Marrow Donors Worldwide (BMDW) network, which brings together records of potential donors from more than 60 countries around the world.
Bone marrow donation is guided by the principle of international solidarity. Every person registered in the Argentine Registry is willing to donate HPC to anyone in the world who needs it. It is important to remember that registration in the Argentine registry is a voluntary act that implies a long-term commitment, since although every HPC donor can change their decision whenever they want, it is vital to accept the decision and take it responsibly.
Those who register as voluntary donors can verify their entry in the computerized database of the National Registry of Expressions of Willingness to Donate. It should be noted that the delay is approximately 6 months, due to the genetic studies that must be carried out beforehand.
The procedure for registering as a CPH donor is identical to that for a normal blood donation; it only requires prior informed consent, which allows the genetic code analysis of the small sample taken, which will then be uploaded to the registry’s computerized database.
The donor’s immunological data is entered into the national registry database. From there, if a patient with identical genetic data to the donor needs a bone marrow transplant, he or she is summoned by the Registry. If the donor’s health is optimal, he or she is informed of the steps to follow in case he or she decides to continue with the bone marrow donation procedure.
In the case of genetic compatibility, the potential donor is contacted and confirms his/her wishes. If he/she confirms his/her decision, the registry coordinates the meeting with the medical team.
Doctors will review the donor’s health. The registry will inform you of the steps to follow in order to donate your cells and will remind you of the information needed to decide which method to use.
There are two methods of HPC donation, both are safe and the donor can quickly resume his or her daily activities.
1) By PUNCTURE of the iliac crests (hip bone), a procedure performed under general anesthesia and requiring one day of hospitalization for clinical monitoring.
2) By APHERESIS, an outpatient practice in which an injectable medication is applied to the arm for 5 days, to stimulate the release of cells (CPH) into the bloodstream and thus extract them from the veins.
Once the cells have been extracted, they are sent to the transplant unit where the patient is located. This will allow him to continue living and reintegrate into society in a healthy way.
At the local level, both the registration for genetic analysis and blood donation are carried out at the Hemotherapy Service of the Municipal Hospital “Dr. Héctor M. Cura”, which is a Donor Collection Center for CPH authorized by Incucai.
Hemotherapy operates at the local hospital (entrance on Av. Sarmiento). Donor registration is provided from Monday to Friday from 8:00 to 10:00 hours.
For inquiries, please contact the Municipal Hospital at 440800 extension 2711. Dr. Paula Morales (Head of the Hemotherapy Service), responsible for the CPH donor registry in our city.
