Bone marrow donation in childhood: one donor's perspective

Allogeneic bone marrow transplantation is an established treatment modality for leukemia, hematologic disorders and inborn errors of metabolism. while the focus of attention is the transplant recipient, the bone marrow donor (often a sibling) is both physically and emotionally involved in the process. Few reports have been written from the donor's perspective, however. One of the authors of this report (G.P.) was a marrow donor as a child, and he reflects on this experience at the completion of his first year of training in medical school.