by Candy Palmo

Years ago I, like many others, made the decision to be an organ donor when I died. However, the possibility of offering some part of my body to benefit others while I was still alive had never crossed my mind, despite the many inspiring stories of the Buddha and the great bodhisattvas who have done so.

However, this past year a few incidents occurred that showed my friend Pat Von Alten and I how we could contribute in this way. First, a Buddhist couple in Taiwan sent an e-mail to Rigdzin Ling asking Buddhist practitioners to volunteer for bone marrow testing because their son would die without a bone marrow transplant. Then an article appeared in a local newspaper about a young child who was dying and in urgent need of a bone marrow transplant. A few months later I saw a film about St. Jude’s Hospital that documented how bone marrow transplants have saved the lives of many children who suffer from life-threatening diseases.

As a result, Pat and I were inspired to join the National Marrow Donor Registry Program, which turned out to be a very simple process. We located a blood center in our area that participates in this program. After it was determined that we met the eligibility requirements, we made an appointment to give a blood sample to be tissue-typed in a special laboratory. We paid $90 for this complex, expensive test at our local center, but for certain ethnic groups this expense is waived because of the critical need for more minority donors.

Our research shows that only thirty percent of people who need a marrow transplant will find a matched donor within their families. When there are no compatible family donors, a search (often worldwide) is initiated. More than sixty potentially fatal diseases—including several types of leukemia—are treated with marrow from non-family donors. The greater the number of people who participate in the program, the greater the chance of finding a suitable donor.

National Registry statistics reveal that since 1988 formal searches have been initiated for 30,486 patients, and as of March this year only 9,545 people have received transplants. In most cases, patients who don’t get transplants will die. I have found that just going through this process of registering has helped to lessen my attachment to the part of me that is so temporary. If you are interested in participating in the program, you can get more information at the following websites: www.marrow.org and www.donor-link.org/bone.

As an alternative to bone marrow donation, you can donate your blood on a regular basis; this is a relatively simple procedure that can be done locally and can help keep people alive while they are waiting for bone marrow or organ transplants. Finally, you can designate your organs for donation at the time of your death. 

Candy Palmo and Pat Von Alten serve the dharma through their activities at Rigdzin Ling, and both have backgrounds in the health care profession.

by Candy Palmo

Years ago I, like many others, made the decision to be an organ donor when I died. However, the possibility of offering some part of my body to benefit others while I was still alive had never crossed my mind, despite the many inspiring stories of the Buddha and the great bodhisattvas who have done so.

However, this past year a few incidents occurred that showed my friend Pat Von Alten and I how we could contribute in this way. First, a Buddhist couple in Taiwan sent an e-mail to Rigdzin Ling asking Buddhist practitioners to volunteer for bone marrow testing because their son would die without a bone marrow transplant. Then an article appeared in a local newspaper about a young child who was dying and in urgent need of a bone marrow transplant. A few months later I saw a film about St. Jude’s Hospital that documented how bone marrow transplants have saved the lives of many children who suffer from life-threatening diseases.

As a result, Pat and I were inspired to join the National Marrow Donor Registry Program, which turned out to be a very simple process. We located a blood center in our area that participates in this program. After it was determined that we met the eligibility requirements, we made an appointment to give a blood sample to be tissue-typed in a special laboratory. We paid $90 for this complex, expensive test at our local center, but for certain ethnic groups this expense is waived because of the critical need for more minority donors.

Our research shows that only thirty percent of people who need a marrow transplant will find a matched donor within their families. When there are no compatible family donors, a search (often worldwide) is initiated. More than sixty potentially fatal diseases—including several types of leukemia—are treated with marrow from non-family donors. The greater the number of people who participate in the program, the greater the chance of finding a suitable donor.

National Registry statistics reveal that since 1988 formal searches have been initiated for 30,486 patients, and as of March this year only 9,545 people have received transplants. In most cases, patients who don’t get transplants will die. I have found that just going through this process of registering has helped to lessen my attachment to the part of me that is so temporary. If you are interested in participating in the program, you can get more information at the following websites: www.marrow.org and www.donor-link.org/bone.

As an alternative to bone marrow donation, you can donate your blood on a regular basis; this is a relatively simple procedure that can be done locally and can help keep people alive while they are waiting for bone marrow or organ transplants. Finally, you can designate your organs for donation at the time of your death. 

Candy Palmo and Pat Von Alten serve the dharma through their activities at Rigdzin Ling, and both have backgrounds in the health care profession.