A Chesterfield Methodist Minister who gave two people the chance of life is now encouraging local residents to volunteer for us.
Andrew Checkley, 42, has donated his stem cells twice to people in desperate need of bone marrow transplants.
He has also spent the last 18 months volunteering to visit those donating their stem cells at Sheffield Hospital. He is asking local residents to join the Anthony Nolan bone marrow register or become a volunteer visitor at Sheffield Hospital.
Andrew's story
Andrew joined our register around 22 years ago when he saw a sign in the doctors’ surgery asking for bone marrow donors. Two years later, Andrew was matched to someone in desperate need of a transplant and he travelled to London to donate.
Andrew at Sheffield hospital with the stem cell collection machine
Andrew says, “I didn’t think too much about it at the time. I thought, if I can do something to help someone else, I will. I was told that the person I was a match for was very ill and there was a chance that they may not make it. Unfortunately, I heard afterwards that they had passed away. It was very sad but I still think it’s so important to donate and give someone that chance.”
A double donation
Just five years later, Andrew received another call to say that he was a match for someone else in need of a transplant. This time, Andrew donated by a process called peripheral blood stem cell collection (PBSC), which is a procedure similar to giving blood and is now used in 90% of donations.
Andrew says, “It really is quite unusual to be called to donate twice when you think of all of the thousands of different tissue types in the world. Some people have asked me if it was painful or difficult. It was actually quite simple and nothing compared to what the recipient is going through at the same time.
Because of regulations protecting the recipient’s anonymity, I wasn’t able to find out what happened to them. I really hope that they recovered and I am grateful that I was able to have played a part in their treatment and give them this important chance of survival.”
Volunteering in Sheffield - can you help?
In 2012, we opened a donation centre in Sheffield and Andrew signed up to volunteer. For the last 18 months, he has visited people donating to talk them through the process and answer their questions.
Soon, Andrew is moving to Leeds and we're looking for more volunteers in the Sheffield area, so Andrew is now encouraging more Sheffield residents to follow in his footsteps.
Andrew says, “You do not need to have been a donor yourself in order to be a visitor, you just need to have time to visit people and be able to commit to be a volunteer. The role of a visitor is to reassure the donor and to answer any questions they may have. You have training for this and there are doctors on hand to answer any medical questions.
I find it a very rewarding thing to do and have the privilege to be alongside the donors for part of the process.”
How you can help
If you are aged 16–30 and in good health, you can join the bone marrow donor register here
If you live in the London or Sheffield area, find out more about becoming a donor visitor here.