Melanie Mathieson of Fort Frances is in isolation for the next four-six weeks on the Acute Leukemic and Bone Marrow Transplant ward at the Health Sciences Centre in Winnipeg, counting on the people back home.
She’s counting on area residents lining up to donate blood to the Canadian Blood Services, which is holding its fall clinic today from 4:30-8:30 p.m. and again tomorrow (Thursday) from noon-3 p.m. and 5-8:30 p.m. at Fort Frances High School.
Mathieson is pushing the clinic hard from her hospital bed because she knows how many much blood it takes to help fight cancer—and the countless other medical crises people face every day.
Mathieson, who spoke to the Times a month ago about the importance of blood donations, was diagnosed with non-Hodgkins lymphoma in February.
Late last week, high-dose chemotherapy used to kill off any microscopic cancer cells in her blood or bone marrow also left Mathieson with virtually no ability to fight infection.
On Monday, she underwent the stem-cell support procedure that hopefully will regenerate new infection-fighting blood cells. She’ll be isolated for the next four-six weeks while that process evolves.
“Here are some statistics about what happens here and this is quite amazing,” Mathieson said yesterday morning from the Winnipeg hospital.
“There are 12 beds on this ward and they are full [with patients] all the time,” she remarked. “On average, patients on this ward alone will need 60 units of blood [each] in order to be rehabilitated.
“Forty-five of those [blood] units are platelets and for every one unit of platelets, it takes five people’s blood to make it,” she stressed.
“Of all the blood products used in this hospital, the [Leukemic and Bone Marrow Transplant] ward uses more than the rest of the hospital combined,” she added.
For the “non-math” crowd, and on the issue of cancer alone, that’s 225 people who have to donate blood in order to meet the platelet needs of just one person—like Mathieson—trying to survive a cancer-fighting procedure.
“I just wanted to remind everyone to give blood. You have no idea how much it helps,” she said.
For more information on blood donation or to book an appointment at the clinic here, call 1-888-236-6283.
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
