By Capt. Ryan Norman
572nd Global Mobility Squadron

TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif., Nov. 21, 2005 — More than a decade ago, then Capt. Marilyn Kott spent a few extra minutes at the end of a mobility processing line to learn about a program that matches Air Force volunteers with persons who need bone marrow transplants.

Three assignments went by and her life went on as usual. Then one day this summer she received a phone call informing her that she was a possible match for 4-month-old baby that needed a bone marrow transplant.

“I almost forgot I had even signed up for the program,” said Kott, a lieutenant colonel with the 572nd Global Mobility Readiness Squadron commander.

A representative from the C.W. Bill Young Donor Center in Kensington, Md., guided Kott through the long process to determine if she was an ideal match.

The Department of Defense donor center supports active-duty military members and their families, department civilians, reservists, Guard and Coast Guard members eligible to donate.

Participation in the program, which is 100 percent voluntary, does not obligate a person to donate. Volunteer can back out at any time.

Kott did not back out. She began the next process of the donor program -- undergoing a telephone interview regarding her health and physical well-being. She also provided updated blood samples, drawn at the David Grant U.S. Air Force Medical Center here and forwarded to the Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C.

“I provided the blood sample, but I still did not really think that I would be a match for someone,” the colonel said.

She was wrong. A month later she found she was the best match for a 4-month old baby with leukemia. This is a disease of the bone marrow in which unrestrained proliferation of white blood cells occurs, usually accompanied by anemia, impaired blood clotting and enlargement of the lymph nodes, liver and spleen.

“When they told me I was the best match, there was no doubt that I would donate,” she said. “The fact the recipient was a baby made it more poignant.”

In the weeks before the procedure, the baby received chemotherapy treatments to stop the progress of the cancer. The treatments destroy bone marrow, which produces red blood cells.

Kott entered Georgetown University Hospital on the morning of Sept. 29 to take the final step. The procedure is relatively simple, only taking about an hour. The donor receives a general anesthesia and the marrow is drawn from the lower back.

After the procedure, the colonel spent time in the recovery room while the anesthesia wore off and then rested overnight in the hospital.

“The people at the hospital at Georgetown treat you so well that it’s easy to think the procedure is about you and not the recipient,” said Kott. “While there was some discomfort, the procedure and recovery were really more of an inconvenience than anything else.”

But the opportunity to meet the recipient will have to wait. According to donor program policy, Kott and the recipient cannot request to know who was on the other side of the procedure until one year passes.

“I’m glad to have been able to participate and would absolutely do it again,” the colonel said. “Bone marrow is one of the body’s organs with amazing life-saving properties, and yet it’s very easy to donate. Really, it’s just a little bone marrow to the donor, but it may be life altering for the patient.”

The baby received the marrow within a few days of the procedure. It’s been five weeks and so far the news is good –- the baby’s health is progressing well.

For more information on the bone marrow program, call toll free 800-627-7693 or visit www.dodmarrow.org.

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