By Alana Mauger
Photo by Alana Mauger/American Red Cross
In March 2019, Stacey Morris made an appointment to see her doctor, concerned about feeling tired and noticing some unexplained bruises on her body. She had blood drawn as part of the exam. The next day, her doctor called with an alarming directive: go to the ER immediately.
Stacey was admitted to the hospital and received 2 units of red blood cells and 1 unit of platelets. After months of testing, including a bone marrow biopsy, and more transfusions of both blood and platelets, Stacey was diagnosed with Aplastic Anemia and borderline MDS (myelodysplastic syndromes – conditions that can occur when the blood-forming cells in the bone marrow become abnormal)
“I can’t even explain the feeling when you don’t have enough blood in your body,” she said. “It’s like a dream state. Those transfusions made an immediate difference.”
In total, Stacey received about 20 units of blood and 8 units of platelets. Because she had an adverse reaction to her initial platelet transfusion, she required HLA-matched platelets (human leukocyte antigens — proteins on most cells in your body) going forward. The American Red Cross helped by finding a donor that matched her needs. She shared that every time she needed a platelet transfusion, the Red Cross contacted that donor, who then scheduled a platelet donation specifically for her!
“The Red Cross has literally saved my life,” she says each time she shares her story. “I wish I knew who my platelet donor was so I can thank them personally.”
Stacey is two years into a process to “reboot” her bone marrow through medication. She’s currently on the lowest medication dose to date and recently underwent a second bone marrow biopsy to see if her bone marrow is functioning properly. If not, Stacey may undergo a bone marrow transplant.
About a year ago, she felt well enough to go back to work part-time as a dental assistant. She resides in Linfield, Pennsylvania with her husband and 3 teenage children.
RedCrossPhillyBlog 