Anna Czerwińska - a famous Polish climber - donated bone marrow for a girl suffering from chronic myeloid leukemia. She had waited several years to become a bone marrow donor. How was the process of registering and collecting the bone marrow?
She had been waiting for this moment since 2001, when she decided that she wanted to give someonemarrow . The first attempt was unsuccessful. In one of the foundations she heard that she was too old because she was 52 years old, but she did not quit. She applied to the Foundation Against Leukemia. After the tests, she was entered into the registerof bone marrow donors . "I didn't even think for a moment if I should do this," she admits. - It was obvious. After all, I donate blood, so I can also donate marrow. Before each trip to the mountains, Anna called the foundation, asking if anyone needed her marrow. She did not want the call to come when she was far away, in a place from which it was not easy to return quickly. "I would just be silly if I couldn't get to the clinic in time." Once, during one of the conversations with associate professor Leszek Kauc, I heard a question: "What will you do if the collection is necessary just before the trip?". I replied without hesitation: "I will not go."
Marrow harvest: I have been selected!
It was October 2006. Anna was training before the expedition to Kanchendzonga (8586 m above sea level). She was just under the peak of Szrenica. She was struggling with freezing snow and a strong wind when the phone rang. She heard: "You are needed, marrow collection will take place in a month." Unfortunately, time passed and the date of the surgery was still postponed. The recipient was still too weak for abone marrow transplantto be performed. The expedition to Kanchendzonga was also canceled. Anna was almost devastated. But finally, happy news arrived: an expedition to K2, which she was to lead, was scheduled for June 2007. She threw herself into the preparations. And just then came the long-awaited call from the foundation. - I was sitting at home with a group of friends - says Anna. - We mentioned some trips and talked about K2. We drank red wine. Suddenly the phone rang. There is a well-known voice on the handset: "Marrow collection scheduled for May 11." I don't remember what I felt then. After I finished talking, my friends asked if anything was wrong.I replied: "Nothing, first I will donate the bone marrow for a person suffering from leukemia, then I will go to Nepal."
Marrow collection: significant date
Annie only bothered the date of May 11th. "I felt she was very important to me," he explains. - I was wondering why, what it means. Finally, I realized that 15 years ago, on May 11, Wanda Rutkiewicz went missing in the mountains. It went like clockwork - To the hospital in Bydgoszcz Jurasz, and more precisely to the Department of Paediatrics, Hematology and Oncology led by prof. Mariusz Wysocki, I drove three times. Two to donate blood that was to be transfused after the bone marrow was collected, and once for the main procedure, says Anna. It was no difficulty. I was ready to do anything, even stand all night on one leg in front of the hospital, as long as it was done. My impatience must have resulted from my character traits. I am the lifeguard type. I will jump into the water without thinking, if anyone drowns, I will not hesitate to climb a tree for a terrified meowing cat. It's a reflex. Someone needs help and needs to be given. I was taught this by the mountains, who do not tolerate petty cunning, in which reliability and proper assessment of the situation are the most important. I didn't even think for a moment that I could withdraw. There was only one thing that bothered me. During many trips to very high mountains, my brain was repeatedly hypoxic. So I wondered how the body would endure complete anesthesia. But after reaching the operating room, all my fears vanished. Jan Styczyński, the lecturer, who was supposed to take the marrow, explained everything to me in detail. I don't know when I fell asleep. Later we joked that I didn't even have time to look around the operating room.
After the bone marrow harvesting procedure
The treatment was not long - it took just over an hour. When Anna woke up from anesthesia, she did not feel anything special - maybe a slight weakness and dizziness. She was more bothered by the drip tube and the ensuing trapping in bed than any discomfort after just taking the marrow. However, this did not hinder her from sending dozens of text messages to friends who were waiting impatiently for messages from her. "After the drip with the blood taken before the surgery was over, I finally got out of bed," she recalls. - Finally, I could drink good tea and eat a previously prepared sandwich. I felt great. Did something hurt me? Slightly. Falls in the mountains are much more painful, not to mention the pain when you get hit by falling stones. I can only say this - there is a slight back pain when changing position. Anna left the hospital after three days. She immediately fell into the vortex of everyday lifeduties. Broadcasts on TV, preparations for the expedition, talks, arrangements, purchasing provisions for the members of the expedition. She herself was surprised that the donation of the marrow did not prevent her from all these pre-planned activities. "I had one crisis day when I wasn't feeling well," she admits. - But after a good dinner and a good night's sleep, everything passed, as he took with his hand. Now I am completely absorbed in the preparations for the expedition. Of course, I think about what happened recently, what I experienced, but it does not limit my present life in any way. One thing I really care about is that the entire operation would not be wasted. And this is not about me at all. I would be happy if my recipient recovered his strength and he alth quickly.
If you want to donate bone marrow, think about it
- Before someone reports to the donor bank, they should think carefully about their decision - says Anna. - Willingness to become a donor cannot be just an impulse of the moment. We must also not act out of pity. I waited several years for the computer to choose me as a donor. And although I was aware that my dream entry to K2 might be at risk, I did not change my mind. Unfortunately, not everyone is determined enough to stick to the bone marrow donation agreement. Anna found out about it during her stay in the hospital in Bydgoszcz. - People give up at the last minute and thus often doom the sick person to great suffering, loss of hope, and maybe even death. You can't do that - he says passionately.
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