It's most common now that people donate peripheral blood stem cells (PBSCs) for transplant, though in some cases people still donate bone marrow. This is when blood stem cells are collected from the donor’s blood stream by removing blood from one arm, running it through a machine that separates out the stem cells, then returning the blood to the donor through their other arm. This was based on data from studies showing that alcoholics are more prone to damaging bone stem cells, and that can cause osteonecrosis. For the four days preceding the donation a nurse will visit you at home or work to inject you with a drug which vastly increases the number of stem cells in your circulating blood. The donor can usually return to work within one or two days. Let’s review some new research. This is a non surgical outpatient procedure and takes around 4-6 hours. Around 90% of donations are carried out using this method. There are a few separate risks to consider in a peripheral blood stem cell donation. The second potential risk has to do with the blood draw itself. The first, and most frequently used method, is to donate stem cells from circulating blood. We have always told stem cell patients to avoid drinking more than a glass of wine before a stem cell procedure. The process is a non-surgical outpatient procedure which usually takes around four hours and can be spread over two days. The donor will receive injections of a naturally occurring growth hormone (G-CSF) for five consecutive days prior to the collection, in order to stimulate the production of stem cells in the blood. Sometimes in o… However, alcohol may be more damaging to stem cells than we first believed. If you are considering donating bone marrow instead of PBSCs check out the possible risks of donating bone marrow.