In this episode I chatted with Lesley Calder, a DKMS volunteer involved with the Hertfordshire and Essex Volunteer Hub, her sister, Ann Hargreaves and Lesley’s son, Max Calder. We discussed Lesley’s experience with her diagnosis of Leukaemia, the luck of finding not one, but two potential matches in her family, Ann’s experience of donating her stem cells to Lesley and Max’s experience of donating to someone in need in America.

There’s only a one in four chance of finding a sibling match, but to have two sibling donor matches feels extraordinary and then to have another member of your family go on to donate to someone else, feels like a real blessing.

You can register to become a stem cell donor with DKMS at www.dkms.org.uk/register if you are between 16 and 55. You can sign up online, which takes moments. You’ll receive a swab kit, which you’ll need to return after doing a quick #cheekswab. Once registered, you’ll be there until you’re 61 years old. You may not ever be contacted, but if you are needed, you could give a family time together or might even save a life.

You can follow the DKMS Herts and Essex Volunteer Hub are and find out more about all that the team are up to at https://www.facebook.com/dkmshertsandessexhub

and on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/dkms_hertsandessexhub/

I always feel so privileged and humbled to be able to speak with such interesting and inspiring individuals on this podcast.

Magical Match is always looking for new guests to share their inspirational stories and if you are that person or those people, we would love to hear from you.

You can email me at ohbeehiveproductions@gmail.com for more information.

I hope you enjoy the listen.

In this episode I chatted with Sarah Rogers, Head of Patient Involvement and Liam Rooney, Patient and Families Manager from Anthony Nolan. We had a lively and meaningful conversation around two amazing events for families that Team Anthony Nolan participate in; Family Camp which happens each year, in partnership with Over the Wall and the Transplant Games for people who have either experienced an organ or a stem cell transplant.

Anthony Nolan’s family camp is held annually in the Midlands and is available to any stem cell transplant or CAR-T recipient under the age of 18, and their family. The event is completely free for families to attend.

The British Transplant Games is an annual event that takes place at the beginning of August and next year, it is in Sheffield and the charity offers to cover the registration costs of all Team Anthony Nolan participants, competitors and supporters.

To find out more visit www.anthonynolan.org or email involve@anthonynolan.org or call 0303 303 0303 and choose option 3.

I always feel so privileged and humbled to be able to speak with such interesting and inspiring individuals on this podcast.

Magical Match is always looking for new guests to share their inspirational stories and if you are that person or those people, we would love to hear from you.

You can email me at ohbeehiveproductions@gmail.com for more information.

I hope you enjoy the listen.

September is Sickle Cell Awareness Month and in this episode, I chatted with Donor Recruitment Development Officer, Melissa Harvey from ACLT – The African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust. Melissa explained about her role within the organisation and talked through what Sickle Cell disorder is and how it affects those diagnosed with what has become the fastest growing inherited genetic condition in the UK.

We talked about the sorts of symptoms you might expect someone with sickle cell to be experiencing and the importance that education and awareness plays, enabling others to act quickly, should someone be experiencing pain and potentially a life-threatening sickle cell crisis.

We talked about ACLT’s short film, One Drop – parts 1 and 2, which you can find on YouTube and the importance of blood donation.

You can watch it here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5R_fI042zrs - part one and here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3WQV4XasCw

We also talked about the possibility of a stem cell transplant being part of the treatment pathway for someone with sickle cell disorder.

It is always a pleasure and a privilege to speak with my guests on this podcast and I hope you find this an inspiring listen.

You can find out about signing up about donating blood, stem cells and organ donation from www.aclt.org Please do it today.

You can follow us on Instagram @magical_match_podcast and do get in touch, if you’d like to join me to share your stem cell story.