u Leukemia
MAUREEN SMITHE
Assistant News Editor
Sophomore Conor Murphy's recent diagnosis with leukemia has drawn special attention at Notre Dame to this confusing and widely varying disease.
The different forms of leukemia make the disease hard to diagnose and very difficult to treat. Out of three million potential donors in the National Bone Marrow Registry, only one was a match with Murphy.
"What we do know it that Conor has an extremely rare, acute form of leukemia," said sophomore Wes Jacobs, a friend of Murphy's.
The disease
Striking both sexes and people of all ages, leukemia has rather elusive signals, including easy bruising, paleness, fatigue and poor healing of minor wounds. Oftentimes the disease is found during a routine physical exam, according to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.
Marcia Robbins, coordinator of the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP), explained leukemia as "a disease of the blood system. The technicalities of it create many different kinds — there are so many kinds that I can't say exactly what leukemia is."
More than 30,000 cases of leukemia are diagnosed every year, and 142,000 people live with the disease, according to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. Every year more than 22,000 people die from it, but over the past 39 years bone marrow transplants have helped to triple the survival rate among leukemia patients.
Transplant treatment
A bone marrow transplant is one of the only real cures for patients with leukemia. According to the NMDP, "marrow is found in the cavities of the body's bones. It resembles blood and contains stem cells, which produce red cells, white cells and other blood components."
A bone marrow transplant replaces diseased marrow with healthy marrow, which is what makes the process so vital to patients battling the disease.
"On any given day there are usually 3,000 people with a disease whose physicians will search the registry for a match," Robbins said.
Participating in the NMDP is painless and quick. Volunteers must be between the ages of 18 and 60 and have a clean bill of health. The actual registration requires only a small blood sample.
"The majority of people who have joined the registry are Caucasian — we have a great need for minorities. We highly encourage minorities especially to considerate it," she said. "Also, with Caucasians we constantly need a refurbishing of the supply."
All potential donors, however, must be prepared for the chance that they may someday be called upon to possibly save someone's life. Although no one on the registry is required to donate if a match is made, the NMDP encourages any potential volunteer donors to register only if they are willing to commit. The chances of matching with a patient are slim, but possible.
Zahm Hall rector Father Jim Lies said the actual donation of marrow is a relatively painless procedure.
"Basically, the procedure itself requires a local anesthetic, and a needle is inserted into the pelvic bone and the marrow is drawn out," he said.
"The worst of it is an achy feeling in your hind quarter for a few days — that's it," he said. "That which is taken from you is restored naturally in four to six weeks."
Zahm sophomore John LeBlanc had an uncle who underwent the donation process when he was called upon as an ideal match for a patient suffering from leukemia.
"I don't think he said it was that bad. He had to stay in the hospital for just a night," he said.
The Procedure
The mystery surrounding the success of bone marrow transplants can be described as a miracle.
The patient is given a lethal dose of chemotherapy and radiation to kill off their cells. In doing so their immune system is depleted, so they have to be isolated. Once the patient has gone through this regime, it puts him in a vulnerable state, so timing is essential. At this point it would most likely be fatal for the patient if the donor were to back out, according to experts.
"A donor's bone marrow is put in through the patient's IV and miraculously the body accepts the new marrow and begins manufacturing new marrow of its own," Robbins said.
Once the donated marrow enters the patient's circulatory system, it takes about one month to see the first evidence of a "graft," meaning that the marrow has begun to work and is producing new cells, according to the NMDP. A noticeable rise in the patient's white blood cell count is the first sign that a graft has occurred.
Still, in some cases, the donated marrow rejects the patient's body, an opposite effect of a heart or liver transplant, where the body rejects the organ. This is part of the risk in undergoing such a procedure.
"Bone marrow is an organ in the body. We want a large proliferation of stem cells for a successful transplant. Because of the reverse situation the procedure is risky," Robbins said.
Just like any other organ transplant, patients are given a wide range of drugs to fight off rejection.
"We do everything we can to make the match work," Robbins said.
The donations from Notre Dame's bone marrow drive tomorrow will help more than just patients with leukemia. Robbins said that 25 percent of bone marrow transplants go to people suffering from other blood diseases, such as Hodgkins, sickle cell anemia and lymphomas.
"I think it is a great credit to the University to host this drive because it is needed and patient-focused," she said.
All News Stories for Tuesday, March 28, 2000
