Patient-Donor timeline

Your journey together

This timeline summarises the steps the patient and donor go through leading up to and beyond donation day.

  1. DONOR STAGE
    Timeline
    PATIENT STAGE

  2. Join the registry

    A donor joins the registry via a blood sample or cheek swab. This sample is sent to a lab to identify the donor’s tissue type. This is what is matched to a patient.

  3. Transplant referral / diagnosis

    Undergoes tests to diagnose a form of blood cancer or other haematological or immune disorder.

  4. Treatment plan development

    Patient’s medical team will decide on the best route for treatment, which includes a blood stem cell transplant.

  5. Donor selected

    The patient’s medical team carefully selects the right donor match.

  6. Potential match

    Phone call to inform a donor that they are a potential match and ask donors to fill in a health questionnaire. The donor provides a blood sample for additional testing.

  7. Final Transplant Eligibility Testing

    Before transplant the patient undergoes additional tests to make sure they are healthy for transplant.

  8. Confirmed match

    Phone call to inform a donor that the have been selected for donation. Verify interest and complete a quick health assessment to ensure the donor can proceed pending the results of a more thorough medical assessment.

  9. Medical assessment and education session

    “Workup” a medical assessment at the hospital where the donation will take place an education session to go over what to expect throughout the process.

  10. Admitted to hospital for transplant preparation

    Getting the patient ready for transplant is called a preparative regimen or conditioning regimen. This includes chemotherapy and possibly radiation therapy.

  11. Donor clearance

    When a donor has been cleared to donate and the donor has consented to donate.

  12. Donation prep

    A PBSC donation requires G-CSF injections a few days before donating. If travel is required, the donor and a support person will travel the day prior to donating.

  13. Donation

    Donor will donate either via PBSC (90% of the time) or via bone marrow from the hip while asleep.

  14. Transplant day

    The donated cells arrive at the transplant hospital and are infused into the patient.

  15. Follow up

    After donating, we check in on donors for up to 10 years.

  16. Post-transplant recovery

    During the first 30-100 days the patient will be monitored for post-transplant complications and infections. After the donated cells begin to grow and create new blood cells, blood cell counts will begin to go up and the immune system becomes stronger.

  17. Final stage - Donor and patient contact

    After donation, donors and patients may correspond anonymously. Limited clinical updates on the patient’s progress may also be requested. Direct contact between donors and patients is possible contingent on both parties independently agreeing and at least two years post-donation has elapsed.

FAQs

We have a dedicated FAQ section for donors. Take a look!

View donor FAQs

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