Feb 19 2013
A teenager recovering from cancer has met the stranger who donated the stem cells which saved her life.
Chloe Jarvis, 13, had an emotional meeting with German man Roland Hauessler, 50, in London at an event to increase the pool of potential donors.
Chloe, from Shotts, North Lanarkshire, was diagnosed with leukaemia in 2008 and is now close to being given the all-clear thanks to the transplant she received a year later.
The operation was only possible after doctors found an 100% match in Mr Hauessler's donated stem cells.
Chloe said: "When I got told I was going to need a stem-cell treatment, I remember just crying non-stop. I thought that it was over but it wasn't. When they told me they had found a 100% match it was a shocker as they said it was a really rare type of leukaemia. I'm now in my last check-up before I get the all-clear."
Chloe was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia in April 2008 and received her transplant the following February. She and Mr Hauessler have kept in touch through the years but have now met for the first time.
Mr Hauessler, who travelled from Nuremberg to meet the teenager, said: "I am very happy and proud to see Chloe healthy and happy. She is growing up as a teenager and makes her family and myself very happy. May there be a lot of these moments all over the world. It can be so easy to save a life."
Organisers of Delete Blood Cancer UK said that no-one should die needlessly through lack of a donor. Director Sandra Bothur said: "We are delighted to be launching Delete Blood Cancer UK today, so we can now start on our work to increase the pool of potential stem cell donors from a range of ages and ethnicity, to save the lives of patients diagnosed with blood cancer and in need of a stem cell donor.
"We have had a thorough period of preparation talking with other organisations to ensure a collaborative approach in developing our operations for the good of the patient, that is the key interest for all of us."
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Stem cell op teenager meets donor