A stem cell transplant recipient has spoken about why she is campaigning to help save more lives.
Aneesa (Anie) Hussain was 17-years-old when she was in desperate need of a life-saving blood stem cell transplant. Now 29, Anie has been encouraging more people to join the urging more young people to join the stem cell register.
Anie was invited to present the final honour on the night to Media Personality of the Year Sangita Myska at the 2024 Asian Media Awards.
She said: “The evening was an incredible chance to celebrate all the extraordinary talent and hard work that everyone is doing and continues to do to break barriers.
“I was able to connect with others and discuss a huge passion of mine – the stem cell register, and trying to increase awareness of it. It was so amazing to see so many forward-thinking ethnic minority members and it is times like this that I see how amazing it can be if the word of the stem cell register is spread widely.
“We have a huge audience that can save lives and really work hard to communicate to their networks and change any misconceptions that people may have.”
Anie said: “Joining the stem cell register can literally save the life of someone who has blood cancer or a severe blood disease, however there is a lack of South Asian donors on the register, meaning it is harder for members of our community to find matches and survive.
“It is a simple procedure that has no risks to the donor but can give someone – anyone – a second chance at life. I was 17 years old when I was diagnosed and now I’m 29. I am here today because I was lucky enough to find a match but unfortunately I have lost so many people who did not find matches.
“Let’s increase awareness of the register, spread the word and sign up. Anyone can be diagnosed with blood cancer, and anyone can be the life-saving donor. Think about it, that could be YOU who has the power to give someone their life back.”
People from a minority ethnic background are less likely to find a matching donor for a stem cell transplant because they are more likely to have a unique tissue type – currently just 16% of donors on the aligned UK registry are from a minority ethnic background.
Anthony Nolan is a charity that finds matching stem cell donors for people with blood cancer and blood disorders and gives them a second chance at life.
To join the Anthony Nolan register, you must be 16-30 and healthy. Anthony Nolan’s world-leading Research Institute has shown younger donors offer better survival rates for patients.
