A cancer patient has traveled more than 10,000 miles from his home Australia To meet UK The man who saved his life.
31 -year -old Luke Mailing traveled worldwide from Melbourne Granham In Lincolnshire To meet Original cell Donor Alastair Hocken.
Mr. Mailing was detected Hodkin lymphoma as a teenager, and by 2022, he had abolished all available treatment options. His only hope was a stem cell donation.
Stem cell donation requires matching tissue types between the donor and the recipient to be successful. Mailing described the moment he came to know that his sister was not a match as “terrible”. No match was found in Australia, a discovery was initiated using the International Stem Sale registries, identified as a suitable donor.
The 51 -year -old man was listed in the NHS Stem Sale Donor Registry for 14 years, before he was found as a match for the needy patient saying that he was found.
Father’s three donated him Stem cell In April 2022. They were cryogenic frozen and were sent to Australia.
Mr. Mailing had its own transplant after a month and is now back to complete health.
The pair was first found in Avenham Park Pretten, LancashireOn Friday.
He said that Mr. Hocken said, “I never thought that this moment would come, there is a blessing to meet you, it fulfills the circle.”
His story is being shared to encourage others to join NHS Stem Sale Donor Registry, available to blood donors between 17 and 40 ages.
“It was really difficult to know that it was a final treatment option for me and I was relying on the mercy of strangers, it was really difficult to sign up for a stem cell register. Thankfully there was a match – a man in the UK, a man in Britain, which I now know as Alastair,” Sri Meling said.
“It is a dream to meet Alastair in a person. What do you say to the person who has given you a part of his own life? There are no words, but I hope he knows how grateful I am.
“I am able to go on the aircraft and fly around the world, only because of him and the moment I get him to hug and thank him, it’s a moment that I will never forget.”
Mr. Hocken said: “I started giving blood in memory of my mother, who died unhappy at the age of 23. He needed nine units during the treatment of cancer and inspired me to give me back.
“One of these regular appointments included a no-brother to join the NHS Stem Sale Donor Registry.
“I really didn’t think about it again until I received a phone call, 14 years later, to tell me that I came as a match for someone who needed a stem cell transplant.
“When I asked if I wanted to move forward, I was not hesitant to say yes.
“It was so simple to donate to my stem cells – it was a few hours of sitting, watching TV and bringing snacks for me for a few hours.
“Meeting Luke really brings home, which can do simple tasks.
“This is incredible to meet Luke and her beloved mother eventually. We are also bound in such a way that I cannot describe both of them and meeting them both is really such an honor.”
Mr. Mailing said: “In 2023, after the stem cell transplant, I started feeling like myself again – I raced a marathon, I traveled, I had lived a way that was not possible for me for so long – and all this is thanks to the Alastair.
“If he had not decided to join the NHS Stem Sale Donor Registry, things could have been very different for me now – there was no one else that he has done for me.”
Lillian hook, from NHS blood and transplantationSaid: “It is fantastic to see Luke and Alastair to meet personally.
“They are two people who live on the opposite sides of the world and yet this is a remarkable story and bond to sharing. It actually goes to show the importance of stem cell donation and the real tangible difference it can make it in someone’s life.
“By joining the NHS Stem Sale Donor Registry, you are giving more patients an opportunity to find a life-saving match, which they are in dire need-it may be your neighbor or it may be a stranger on the other side of the world but the impact on them and their families is the same.
“It is easy to join the registry – just ask your next blood donation appointment and one day, such as allstaire, you can get a call, which can ask you to help.”
