Bone marrow matches -- Civilian gets chance to help leukemia patient Published Aug. 24, 2006 By Susan Griggs 81st Training Wing Public Affairs KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. (AETCNS) -- Answering the phone can be a joy, an aggravation, a mindless routine -- or an opportunity to save a life. Seven years ago, when Cindy Milford participated in a bone marrow registration drive at Keesler, she was told the odds of being contacted as a donor were very slim. So, she put that prospect out of her mind until three months ago, when she got the call to donate bone marrow to help a cancer patient. Mrs. Milford, the 81st Services Division's graphics illustrator for the past nine years, returned March 1 from the Greenebaum Cancer Center at the University of Maryland. She donated blood stem cells for transplantation into a 62-year-old man suffering from leukemia. "You could've knocked me over with a feather," said Mrs. Milford of the late November phone call from the Department of Defense's Bill Young Marrow Donor Center in Rockville, Md. "I was in shock to hear that I was a potential match for someone -- it hit me like a ton of bricks," she said. "I got a little teary to think that I might be able to help someone overcome a terrible disease." Diane Moore, senior donor services coordinator for the DOD center, forwarded a kit to Keesler Medical Center to draw more of Mrs. Milford's blood and return it to the center. "Diane said the sample would determine if I was the best match, and that I had a one in 10 chance of being a match," Mrs. Milford said. "She said it usually took three to four months before they notify the matching donor, so I put it on the back burner, thinking it would be March before I heard any news." In early January, she got another call -- she was the best match. "I just wanted to cry and cheer all at the same time," Mrs. Milford said. The first person she shared the news with was her husband, Roger, 81st Services Division training manager. The Milfords made their first trip Jan. 22 to the Greenebaum Cancer Center, where Mrs. Milford had a thorough physical examination to confirm she was physically fit for the marrow donor program, including drawing another 15 tubes of blood for various tests, a blood pressure check, a chest X-ray and an electrocardiogram. Feb. 16, she returned to Keesler Medical Center to have more blood drawn for two tests which had to be done within 15 days of the procedure to assure that she wouldn't transmit any infections to the recipient. Mrs. Milford and her husband flew back to Maryland Feb. 23 to begin the marrow harvesting procedure. "The recipient's insurance pays the expenses for the donor and a companion to fly to the GCC for the treatment," she said. "They'll even pay for child care and pet kenneling if needed. The length of stay depends on which harvest method is recommended by the doctors for the best chance of survival of the recipient." Rather than drawing marrow from the pelvic bones, Mrs. Milford donated marrow by the peripheral blood stem cell collection process, which doesn't require anesthesia. Feb. 24, she began receiving daily injections of a growth hormone called filgrastim, which boosts circulating stem cell production 500 percent. For the first two days, she felt well enough to do some sightseeing in Washington, but by Feb. 26, the side effects of the drug began to kick in -- headaches, nausea, body aches and extreme fatigue. She was given medication to ease the symptoms. Feb. 28, her marrow was retrieved by apheresis, a process in which blood is removed through a sterile needle in one arm, passed through a machine that separates the stem cells and the remaining blood is returned through the other arm. "The technicians were extremely pleased with the results -- they said it was the highest white count they've ever seen, which is great for the recipient," Mrs. Milford said. Two technicians were on standby during the procedure to get the marrow ready for transport and transplantation. Before the cells could be transplanted directly into the recipient's bloodstream, he had to undergo chemotherapy and radiation treatment to completely destroy his diseased bone marrow. In a successful transplant, the blood stem cells travel to the marrow, where they begin to grow new, healthy marrow and blood cells. "I wasn't worried about the procedure for myself, but I was very concerned about the recipient," Mrs. Milford said. "He had to go through chemo to kill all of his bone marrow, which puts him at a terrible risk. My part seems pretty simple." "I'm really proud of Cindy -- she has so much inner strength," her husband said. "I wasn't worried about the procedure, because it's basically 'blood out, blood in.' She has an aversion to flying, which she's put behind her to do this for another person. "The resolve she's shown since being identified as a match, to stay healthy and make sure she was able to donate, is amazing," Mr. Milford said. "She'll be the first to tell you that it isn't about her -- it's about the recipient." It's difficult to predict the outcome for an individual marrow recipient. How well a transplant works depends on many factors -- what disease is being treated, the stage of the disease, the patient's age and general health and the degree of tissue match between the donor and patient. "I just hope the transplant will prolong this patient's life so he'll have more time with his loved ones," Mrs. Milford said.