Blood is often referred to as a medicine that comes from the heart. This was particularly true for Ronald Monaco.

Diagnosis: Aplastic Anemia
After feeling weak, experiencing bouts of dizziness and looking pale, Ronald was diagnosed in December of 2003 with severe aplastic anemia. Aplastic anemia is a condition in which the body stops producing enough new blood cells. A patient with aplastic anemia is fatigued and at higher risk for infections and uncontrolled bleeding.

A Year Of Blood Transfusions
Ronald's condition was so severe and his white blood counts were so low that he was immediately admitted to the hospital where he spent the next 45 days. While Ronald received two treatments of chemotherapy, his primary medication was the series of blood transfusions he received over the course of the following year. Ronald was transfused with red blood cells and platelets three to four times a week during that time period. With so much blood being given, the transfusions had to be adminstered more slowly than usual so as not to overwhelm his system. The blood helped Ronald to feel more energetic, fight infection and perform all the life-sustaining functions performed by blood cells.

This Condition Has Many Different Causes
There are many causes of this rare condition which affects only an estimated two people per every million in the United States. Aplastic anemia develops when damage occurs to the bone marrow, slowing or shutting down the production of new blood cells. In about half of cases, doctors are unable to identify the cause of aplastic anemia. In Ronald's case, the anemia was caused by a rare side effect of the medication he had been taking to treat gout.

In Remission
As of this writing, Ronald has been in remission from his aplastic anemia for several months and the future is looking bright.

Blood donors who give blood through the Red Cross help patients like Ronald in cities and towns throughout New England and across the United States. Please….give blood. Together, we can save a life.

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