5 Common Myths about Bone Marrow Transplant

Bone marrow is the soft tissue inside certain bones where stem cells- immature cells that can become any type of blood cell, are produced.  Unfortunately, common myths about bone marrow donation too often misguide people. Get a glimpse of it at Fortis Hospitals as it is known to be one of the top bone marrow transplant surgery hospitals in India. Here are five such facts behind six common misconceptions about bone marrow donation:

·         Myth 1: Bone marrow donation is painful

Usually, there are two ways you can donate stem cells- peripheral blood stem cell donation or via bone marrow donation. While there is some pain associated with both the methods, the amount of discomfort entirely depends on method to method and person to person.

·         Myth 2: Bone marrow donation may have long-term consequences

Over the long term, donating stem cells by either method is relatively harmless to the donor. Bone marrow levels typically return to normal within a few weeks of the donation, and donors can resume their daily activities. The use of anesthesia during bone marrow donation may cause the donor to feel tired or weak.

·         Myth 3: Bone marrow is taken from the spine

Bone marrow donations have nothing to do with the spine. Peripheral blood stem cell donation involves collecting blood stem cells from the bloodstream. From bone marrow transplant, marrow is extracted from the back of the donor’s pelvic bone, not the spine.

·         Myth 4: Bone marrow transplant is time-consuming

In most cases, donors are asked to donate within one to three months. For peripheral stem cell donations, the donor must take injections for the five days before the procedure begins, and then the donation takes roughly four to six hours over the course of one day. The bone marrow extraction process takes one to two hours, and donors may stay overnight at the hospital before getting back to doing regular activities.

·         Myth 5: Family members can donate a bone marrow

Only 30% of patients are fortunate enough to find a match within their own family. The vast majority of patients in need of a transplant must rely on donors outside their families. Being a bone marrow donor is a serious commitment, but imagine the happiness of saving someone’s life.

Equipped with a set of learned surgeons and world-class facilities, Fortis Hospitals has been one of the best bone marrow transplant surgeryhospitals in Bangalore.

Three Common Myths about Cardiac Surgery

There are a lot of assumptions we make or have about our hearts. And for each myth, there’s often some truth upon which it is founded.

Take heart attacks, for instance.

Most people imagine they would know when they are having a heart attack. With all the sweating, soreness in the left arm and sudden disabling chest pain, it’s not difficult for an individual to recognize symptoms of a heart attack.

But that’s always not the case. Sometimes the signs are much more subtle. In order to recognize the signs of having a heart disorder, consult at Fortis Hospitals, renowned to be the best cardiac hospital in India.

So here are six major hearth health myths that need to be busted:

Myth 1: ‘I would know if I had high blood pressure or high cholesterol’

Not unless you get a blood pressure or cholesterol test done, you wouldn’t ever know if you’ve them. When high blood pressure is represented with symptoms like headaches or renal failure, it’s more difficult to control at that stage. Early treatment is essential in order to prevent end organ damage which is usually irreversible.

Myth 2: Heart disease treats men and women the same

Heart disease can affect the sexes very differently. This begins with symptoms. Although many people explain the pain as “elephant sitting on the chest” when they have a heart attack but there are less traditional symptoms and they are more common among women. Nausea or indigestion can also be some of the atypical symptoms forewarning a heart attack. Pay attention to how you feel before it’s too late.

Myth 3: Younger women aren’t at risk

If you think heart disease are for older women and men, and not for the younger crowd, you are believing in a myth. Risk factors that contribute to heart disease including obesity, type 2 diabetes and hypertension are showing now in younger women.

It’s never too late to treat a heart disease. Small lifestyle changes are key factors in preventing heart disease and controlling risk factors. Fortis Hospitals, known to be one of the premium cardiac care hospitals in India will provide you with every possible guidance you need.

Cancer—Early Diagnosis Is Key

Early diagnosis of cancer usually increases the chances for successful treatment by focusing on detecting symptomatic patients as early as possible. 

The consequences of delayed cancer care are lower rate of survival, greater morbidity of treatment and higher costs of care, resulting in unavoidable deaths. 

Early diagnosis improves cancer outcomes by providing care at the earliest possible stage. Know everything about early detection of cancer at the Fortis International Care which is known to be one of the besthospitals for cancer care in Bangalore.

Early diagnosis

Early diagnosis aims at reducing the percentage of people being diagnosed with cancer. There are three steps to cancer early diagnosis.

Step 1: To spread awareness and access to care, a coordinated approach should be developed that includes empowerment and engagement linked to people-centric services.

Step 2: Health-care providers at all levels of care should be well-equipped with the skills to identify cancer symptoms and perform diagnostic tests. Pathology is particularly important in cancer diagnosis, a patient is not advised to begin cancer treatment unless there is pathological confirmation of cancer.

Step 3: Financial, logistical, geographic and sociocultural barriers must be considered and addressed as per national context to improve access to timely cancer treatment. Ensuring access to quality, timely cancer treatment is critical to making cancer outcomes better.

Early diagnosis or screening?

Decision-making depends on a number of factors, the risk for a particular cancer in a specific population, the overall health care system and resources available in a given country. In areas where the majority of patients are diagnosed at a later stage, early diagnosis can have a great impact and build health system capacity.

Equipped with a set of erudite doctors and best-in-class technologies, Fortis International Care stands out to be one of the finest cancer hospitals in India.