This factsheet is for children who need to have a bone marrow biopsy to check if they have aplastic anaemia.
What is a bone marrow biopsy?
A bone marrow biopsy is when doctors take a small piece of bone marrow and check it under a microscope to see if you have aplastic anaemia.
Your bone marrow is the spongy part inside your big bones where stem cells are made. These stem cells turn into all the blood cells your body needs to keep you well. In aplastic anaemia, bone marrow doesn’t make enough of these stem cells. The biopsy will help doctors to see whether this is the reason you’ve not been feeling well or have been having problems. Most importantly, it will also help them to decide how to make you feel better.
What’s in this factsheet?
This factsheet explains a bit more about bone marrow and aplastic anaemia. It tells you what happens when you have a bone marrow biopsy and what happens afterwards.
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