Picture of bone cancer

When Capt. Brent Davis agreed to help drum up support for a bone marrow donor drive, he had no idea that 18 months and 1.5 liters of bone marrow later his actions may have saved a young man's life.

The journey began when a fellow officer contacted Captain Davis, 910th Airlift Wing chief of public affairs at Youngstown Air Reserve Station, Ohio, to ask for his help in drumming up support for a local visit by representatives from the C.W. Bill Young Department of Defense Marrow Donor Program.

"As I heard about the program, it sounded great to be able to save somebody's life," the captain said. "I understood how significant that was. But it sounded really painful.

"In the back of my mind I was thinking, 'You know, I probably won't be doing this.' I can contribute in my own way by putting it in the (unit) magazine and trying to make things happen."

So Captain Davis went about the task of creating an intensive campaign to get the Youngstown populace interested in marrow donation. That campaign was successful. But he didn't stop there. Despite his apprehension, he registered with the Department of Defense and National Marrow Donor Program Registry.

Months went by, the seasons changed, and life went on as usual. Then one day last September Captain Davis received a phone call informing him that he was a possible match for someone in need of a bone marrow transplant.

"It was the last thing I ever expected," he said. "I thought, 'Well, I won't be a perfect match, so I'll just go along with it and see where it goes.'"

Jemila Early, senior donor service coordinator with the C.W. Bill Young Donor Center, guided Captain Davis through the lengthy process of determining if he was indeed a suitable match. Located in Kensington, Md., the donor center was established by the DOD and supports active-duty military members and their families, DOD civilians, reservists, and National Guard and Coast Guard members who are eligible to donate.

"I inform potential donors of their status, then hold an information session to let them know what they can expect," Ms. Early said. In addition, she said she coordinates all the activities involved in the process, including travel, medical appointments and lab tests.

Another important role Ms. Early plays is determining ways to best meet the needs of both the donation center and the donor.

Captain Davis said he was told that if he happened to receive a call from the donor center, it meant there was a 10 percent chance that he would be a perfect match.

"I played along and kept cooperating but still thought it wouldn't go much further," he said.

He was wrong. It turned out that Captain Davis was the perfect donor for a 17-year-old boy with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, a type of cancer that affects the body's lymphatic system.

"When they told me the recipient is a 17-year-old boy, that hit home," Captain Davis said. "Being a parent myself, there was no way I could not do it."

He decided that whatever temporary pain he had to go through would be worth it if he could help save the boy's life. in fact, the captain was so eager to help he forged ahead without talking over his plans with his wife, Sonya.

"I get a little wound up about things sometimes," Captain Davis said. "I tend not to do things properly, so without tactfully running it by her, I decided this was what I was going to do. I didn't really take her feelings into consideration.

"I just didn't think of the risk. I had to make that right with her."

This time, Sonya let the oversight slide.

"It's a great thing to help somebody out," she said, "especially in this capacity, giving up something of yourself. I know it will work out."

Captain Davis said Sonya was very supportive--when he finally told her about his decision.

"She's got tremendous faith," he said. "She just figures this has to be from God, because what is the likelihood of this, to be a perfect match?"

Even with the deck stacked in favor of both the donor and recipient, there were a lot of bridges to cross before the trip to Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C., where the operation was to take place. Captain Davis suffered through weeks of paperwork and other hassles.

"I was being inconvenienced a lot," he said. "I guess when you get so wrapped up in the bureaucracy of (the process), it frustrates you, makes you not even want to do it. And it takes you away from the reality of what's going on with this kid.

"It's very easy to look just at your side of it. You're not even thinking of what's going on with this other person."

However, as the date of the procedure neared, the big picture came into focus.

"All of a sudden, it came into perspective," the captain said. "I couldn't help but sit and wonder what this kid was doing the week (prior to the procedure) or how his family was doing. Were they crying? Were they confident? What's going on with them?"

Captain Davis' determination to follow through and finish the donor process was pivotal. In the weeks leading up to the procedure, the marrow recipient undergoes intense chemotherapy or radiation treatments to stop the progress of the cancer. The treatments destroy bone marrow, which produces red blood cells.

If Captain Davis were to back out at the last minute, the 17-year-old on the other end of the process would have no bone marrow at all--no way to manufacture those essential, life-sustaining cells.

The captain entered Georgetown University Hospital on the morning of Dec. 8 to take the final step.

Dr. Tamarro Taylor, an assistant professor of medicine at Georgetown University, performed the procedure to harvest bone marrow from Captain Davis' pelvic bone. Like the thousands of other collections she's performed in the last 10 years, Taylor used a special needle and syringe to draw out the marrow.

After the procedure, Captain Davis spent some time in the hospital's recovery room while his anesthesia wore off and then rested overnight in the hospital to make sure he didn't suffer any complications.

Sitting in his hotel room the next day, after being discharged, Captain Davis said he felt fairly well.

"I'm achy, but it's a very tolerable pain," he said. "I just can't help but wonder how it's going for this young man.

"Everything I've done up to this point ... that's just my story. You've got this other, unknown story, this young man and what's going on with him. I wish I could know right now. I wish I could get on the phone and talk with his mom."

The opportunity for a meeting, though, will have to wait. According to donor program policy, Captain Davis and the recipient cannot request to know who was on the other side of the procedure until one year passes.

"If I had the chance to talk to him, I would say that to be able to give this marrow is just absolutely nothing compared to what he's going through, and my heart goes out to him," the captain said. "I just want him to know he's in my prayers, and I feel that he is so courageous. It's truly an honor that I'll cherish for the rest of my life."

In the meantime, Captain Davis did meet someone else who is very important to the donor program. While waiting for his flight from Washington back to Youngstown, he and a friend struck up a conversation with a woman who asked if the captain had been wounded overseas.

"I told her, no, I had just donated bone marrow the day before," he said.

The woman's face lit up as she presented her husband's business card. She was Beverly Young, wife of U.S. Rep. C.W. Bill Young (R-Fla.), for whom the DOD bone marrow donor program is named.

Ms. Young sat down for a meal with the captain and called her husband so the two men could talk. Captain Davis said the congressman was very excited to speak to him. When Ms. Young and the captain parted ways, she promised he would hear from her again.

Captain Davis is back at work now, having come so far since the day he agreed to help raise support for a program he knew little about. Not a day goes by that he doesn't think about the young man who needed an Air Force captain's bone marrow to fight for a long and full life.

RELATED ARTICLE: Simple registration first step in marrow donor program.

The C.W. Bill Young Marrow Donor Center, located in Kensington, Md., is responsible for supporting Department of Defense volunteers, age 18 through 60, who are interested in serving as bone marrow donors.

Eligible volunteers include active-duty military members and their dependents, DOD civilians, members of the Coast Guard, and members of the various reserve components.