This year, I got to meet my recipient. Check out my story and video below. 

https://www.nhl.com/predators/news/donor-recipient-meeting-highlights-preds-hockey-fights-cancer-night/c-315664108

My work as a CRA at Covance, the drug development business of LabCorp, helps pharmaceutical companies develop life-changing medicines and medical devices – but I never imagined that I would experience the joy of directly saving a life. 

My journey started when I was in college and serving as president of my fraternity. I attended a leadership conference at the University of Georgia, Athens in 2016 and happened to stop by a booth hosting a donor drive for the Gift of Life registry. Their registry connects patients with a donor match for life-saving blood stem cell and bone marrow transplants. At the conference, they were collecting mouth swabs from conference attendees who were willing to be added to their registry.

I knew immediately I wanted to join the registry. My late mother had received two organ transplants, so I knew firsthand the impact of donor programs. My mother suffered from non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and type 2 diabetes. She was genetically predisposed to these diseases, which eventually led to multiple organ failure. 

Fortunately, she received a liver transplant in 2010 and a kidney transplant in 2017. These transplants increased the quality of her life and gave me more time to spend with her. I am forever grateful for those extra years, and for the individuals that selflessly checked the Organ Donor box on their driver’s license. I wanted to carry on that legacy and inspire others to do the same. 

Then one day I got a phone call from Gift of Life (an associate donor registry of the National Marrow Donor Program/Be the Match). At first, I thought it was a telemarketing scam and nearly hung up before they explained there was a teenaged girl with leukemia whose only chance for survival was a bone marrow transplant – and I was a match.

Brianne had been diagnosed with acute leukemia when she was 17 years old. As a senior in high school, she underwent six grueling months of chemotherapy, only for the cancer to return seven months later. She needed a transplant, and she needed it fast. Hearing Brianne’s story filled me with emotion. I can’t imagine being in her spot, hoping that a match be found so she could live. 

A small procedure for me would mean the whole world for her. Thousands of people lose the fight to leukemia each year, and I wanted to help change that. I said yes without hesitation. 

Soon, I was on a plane to Washington, DC for an eligibility test. I was confirmed as a match and happy to learn that as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I would not be excluded from donation as rumored. In fact, I was surprised how many such myths surround bone marrow transplants. Did you know:  

1. There are two ways to donate. The patient’s doctor decides which method is best for their patient.
2. Most give through a Peripheral Blood Stem Cell (PBSC) donation. A machine draws blood from one arm, extracts the cells it needs, and returns the remaining blood through your other arm.
3. Others give through a marrow donation. Liquid marrow is withdrawn from the back of your pelvic bone with a needle. In this case, you’ll receive anesthesia and feel no pain during the procedure.
4. You do not have to be a family member to donate to a patient in need.
5. Donating involves only minimal risks.

Because of Brianne’s young age, the medical team recommended the general anesthesia route. I flew back to Washington, D.C. for the in-patient procedure. On the day of the harvest, I felt a little nervous but remembered the conversations with the nurses and doctor about how relatively simple the procedure was for me. Gift of Life even allowed a friend to accompany me on the trip for support. 

I checked into the hospital, had my vitals and labs checked, received the anesthesia and thereafter woke up in recovery. All had gone well and the doctors had actually been able to harvest more bone marrow than they expected! This was great news for Brianne. My marrow was then transported. At this time, for patient confidentiality reasons, I still did not know anything about my recipient – only that she was a young woman battling leukemia. Soon after, Brianne received a successful transplant. 

One year after her transplant, I had the opportunity to meet Brianne for the first time at the Nashville Predators “Hockey Fights Cancer” game. The televised event filmed me and Brianne as we met for the first time after the transplant. I didn’t know what to expect. As I walked out to meet her in person, I was nervous and excited. We were both shaking. The gravity of the situation set in as we hugged. The realization that I had helped save a life was intense, incredible – unforgettable. 

Brianne is now 20 years old and started university where she is studying biomedical engineering and has been inspired to work in research. Who knows? Someday, we might work side-by-side to improve health and improve lives together.

I’m proud of the impact I’m making – and know my mom would be, too. Join me in giving the gift of life!