‘Watershed moment’
Advocate working to build Canada’s network of stem cell donors
TORONTO — Daniel Tarade recalls having a “watershed moment” when learning he was needed as a stem cell donor.
He was on his way to see a psychologist for an anxiety disorder when the phone call came about stem cell donation. A light went on and he realized others were also struggling and that he could help.
It all started several years ago when Tarade gave a simple swab sample which eventually lead to him becoming a donor for an ailing stranger in the fall of 2016.
“When I got called, I was in a period of intense stress in my life … I was on medication for anxiety. I definitely had a very restricted safe space in my life — areas where I felt comfortable and this didn’t include even routine blood donation,” Tarade said.
“It was one of those watershed moments for me (when he got the call to donate) where it’s like, ‘Yes, there are other people out there in the world struggling.’ For me, what I gave up barely registers on the scale compared to what a person with leukemia or lymphoma is giving up on a daily basis.”
Since 2016, Tarade has been an advocate for the Stem Cell Club at the University of Toronto, encouraging others, ages 17-35, to become donors with the Why We Swab Campaign.
This February, stem cell donation drives will be held at universities across Canada.
At any given time, more than 1,000 Canadians are waiting for a stem cell donation to treat up to 80 diseases, including blood disorders leukemia, Hodgkin lymphoma, and myeloma.
Most patients don’t have a donor match within their own families and must rely on strangers.
Dr. Warren Fingrut founded Stem Cell Club in 2011 to improve the stem cell donor database in Canada.
To date, the club has recruited over 17,500 Canadians donors, registering more than 5,000 Canadian donors each year.
“Stem Cell Club works to recruit Canadians who are willing to be donors if they match to a patient in need. Donors must be between the ages of 17 and 35 to register, and we especially aim to recruit male and ethnicallydiverse individuals, as these donors are associated with improved patient outcomes,” said Fingrut, a hematology resident physician at the University of British Columbia.
“Our teams advocate for patients in need of stem cell transplantation, many of whom can’t find the match they need in their families. The drives give hope to patients who are actively searching for a match.”
Stem cell donation can be harvested in two ways.
Blood can be drawn through a needle and the stem cells are separated from the sample.
Stem cells can also be retrieved from bone marrow. While the donor is under anesthesia, needles withdraw stem cells from the marrow of the pelvic bones.
For more information, go to stemcellclub.ca.