Anthony Nolan laboratory scientist Daniel Eggleston donated his bone marrow in March 2013 to a female patient in their 20s.
Dan was surprised to get a call out of the blue last June, saying he’d come up as a match for a patient with blood cancer.
He joined the British Bone Marrow Register at a blood donation session when he was 19. ‘When they asked me if they could take some additional blood for tissue typing, I said “why not”. I knew the chances of coming up as a match were very small and it seemed like such a simple thing to do.’
Dan was completing his MSc in Transfusion and Transplantation Science at Bristol when he was told he was a potential match for a patient who needed a lifesaving transplant. ‘They asked me to provide a small blood sample for confirmatory typing to see if I was a suitable donor. I was then told I was the best possible match for the patient and asked if I was happy to proceed.’
Unusually Dan was asked to donate through bone marrow extraction. Over 90% of donations now take place through peripheral blood stem cell collection (PBSC), a process a bit like giving blood. ‘I assumed I’d donate via PBSC as that’s the most common process, so the idea of an operation was a little worrying. But I pretty much made my mind up right away to say yes.’
The donation was scheduled for November 2012, giving Dan plenty of time to talk through the procedure with NHSBT staff, his family and his friends. ‘Once I’d looked into the process and knew there was no real risk, I started to feel really excited. My friends kept asking if it was going to be painful, but I was thinking about the fact I’d have the chance to potentially save someone’s life, just by donating my bone marrow.’
November approached and Dan had a call to say the patient was improving and they’d decided to postpone the treatment. ‘I was actually really disappointed,’ he said.
In January 2013, Dan joined Anthony Nolan as a laboratory scientist, working with the team which amplifies and analyses the DNA found in saliva and blood samples for tissue typing. It was then he received another call to say the transplant centre had decided to proceed and had scheduled the operation for the 6th March.
‘Working here and knowing the whole process and the effect it could have on a patient’s life really hit home.’
Dan donated at the London Clinic, his first ever stay in hospital. ‘As I lay back on my bed and chose my fry up for breakfast, I thought to myself, “I’ll have to do this more often”!’
The procedure was very straightforward and Dan was in and out in less than an hour and back on his feet towards the end of the day. ‘I had some soreness around the extraction sites and felt a little tired and achy, but I went for a walk up and down the corridor that afternoon.’
After a week off work, he came back to a card to ‘Donor Dan’ from his colleagues in the Anthony Nolan labs and, poignantly, a thank you note from his recipient’s family.
‘I felt nervous about undergoing the bone marrow extraction but I’m so pleased I donated. It was straightforward, the whole thing was all done so quickly and I was playing football with the guys from work a week and a half later!’