Unstoppable Testimonies

I am 30 years old and a couple of years ago I was donating blood and plasma, like so many others, without knowing that there were other living donation possibilities. During a blood donation, a nurse came up to me and told me for the first time about the Josep Carreras Foundation. She asked me if I had ever heard about bone marrow donation. I let her explain it to me and I was so fascinated that that very day I left the donation centre having signed the papers to become a bone marrow donor.

The truth is that I thought that this type of donation was very unusual and that there would be thousands of people registered. In August 2021 I received a phone call that would change my life. They were calling to ask me if I wanted to donate bone marrow to someone who was in need. I didn’t hesitate once, I said yes, even though I was slightly scared.

During that phone call we talked about what the process would be like and what I would have to do. When we finished, I realised that I had been talking with the phone in hands-free mode and that my six-year-old daughter had overheard the whole conversation.

She was on the sofa watching television and I went up to her to discuss the issue, she then started to cry because she thought that I was the one who was ill. I explained to her that the phone call was to save the life of another person who was really ill… It took a lot of convincing to make a six-year-old girl understand that, but in the end I managed to do it.

From that moment on, she has been at my side throughout this wonderful process of being able to give a second chance to a person who needs it.

From this point on, I started to do my own research on the subject, which was a mistake. This should never be done, as the people who have to explain, advise and guide are the people who know what it is about. In fact, when I went to take the first tests, they explained everything perfectly well.

On 25 January 2022 I went into hospital to complete the donation procedure.

Many of you may ask why I did it or if I have a family member with this disease… Fortunately, my family, my friends and everyone close to me have nothing to do with this disease.

Let me ask you a question:

If you had a relative, friend or acquaintance who needs this donation and you are unable to help them, would you like someone to do it for you? This is what motivates me to be a bone marrow donor. So I encourage you all to become bone marrow donors.

The more people we are, the more lives we can save!