What was your experience with bone marrow biopsy?

The people that replied here may all have had some sort of sedation and/or local anesthetic.
Be sure to request the same.

Beantown
Not one painful milasecond in 5 biopsies. Tell em you want to count sheep uninterrupted.

@llovern1047 Welcome to Mayo Clinic Connect. I see you have been a member for a couple years and this is your first post. May I ask the reason the bone marrow biopsy was done in your case?
Ginger

I had all sorts of preconceived horrors about BMB. Piece of cake! No pain or discomfort at all. Don’t get all psyched out about it. You’ll be fine!

I had a one marrow biopsy and aspiration two days ago. I was fully awake but was given some “light” sedation. Didn’t feel a thing. The procedure was over and done with super fast. No soreness at all afterwards.

My 82 year old wife has had three with no problems. One was done in her room.

My husband has had several biopsies with all being under local and then a few with twilight sedation. He now prefers just the local and just get it done. It is most of the time done real quick. He doesn’t like waiting for the results. He hasn’t had any for a long while though. Curious if at his two year anniversary of the bone marrow transplant if they will want one or just go off of the who’s who test at that time. It all is a true miracle that you can be given a second chance like this. Amen

I had one with a local and was awake..resident did under my oncologist's direction. I felt a little digging but nothing intolerable. My 89 year old husband was nervous about having one and his was fine under twilight sedation in hospital as outpatient..no problem

Good morning, @irishgoff82. It’s always so jarring when we get news about our health that we don’t understand, isn’t it? I’ve been there myself and until we learn more about the facts it leaves us rattled and feeling uncertain. I’m so glad that you found Connect. Hopefully I can shed some light on what the mutation in the JAK2 gene could indicate.

The JAK2 gene directs cells to make the JAK2 protein, which stimulates cell growth and division. When there’s a mutation in this gene, it can, for lack of better words, override the control switch to shut off production of certain blood cells which can potentially lead to various health issues. For example, some people may have an over production of red blood cells leading to a diagnosis of PV (polycythemia vera) or a proliferation of platelets in a condition called ET (essential thrombocythemia). The mutation can also cause changes in the bone marrow over time.
However, there are medications which can help control this over production and people live long and healthy lives.

There are quite a few members in Connect who also have the same mutation. We have some lively conversations within the support groups where I think you’ll find you’re not alone We’re all here to share our experiences and to offer hope so that you won’t feel as worried about your recent news.

I’d love to direct you to the right group though so I’ll need a little more information if you don’t mind sharing. You mentioned that your platelets are normal, which is great. Were there other blood test numbers such as hemoglobin or hematocrit that were elevated?
Can you tell me a little more about what led your doctor to order a bone marrow biopsy?

Over the past 7 years, I have had 4 bone marrow biopsyies and aspirates. They were each done with local anesthetic in my doctor's office. I had no prior warning for any of them. Each one lasted about 30 to 40 minutes from start to finish. I experienced no pain and very minimal discomfort with each procedure. I drove myself home without any issue.