Emotional movement: Blood stem recipients finally meet their donors

It was an emotional moment for the families of two girls, both blood stem recipients, as they got to meet their donors, one of them an haematologist, after completion of the mandatory one year period of the procedure, at an event here.

K G Disha and Vanshika Rohra, aged three and five respectively, were suffering from severe blood disorders and doctors had given a slim chance of their survival.

But the blood stem cells of two donors, both unrelated and unknown, proved to be a match and Disha and Vanshika were cured of Hurlers Syndrome and Thalassemia respectively after treatment.

At an event organised on Friday by 'Datri,' a blood stem cell donor registry, the families and donors were overcome with emotion. According to the registry protocol, the identity of donors and recipients are kept anonymous for one year and Datri arranges a meeting only on completion of the period when both express their desire to meet each other.

The 37-year-old Dr Shruti Kakkar had registered with Datri during a drive at Dayanand Medical College and Hospital in Ludhiana in May 2017. Within 4 months of registering, the haematologist's blood stem cells were found to be a perfect match for Vanshika.

Kakkar, who was almost in tears, said, "I am so happy to meet Vanshika. The medical treatment was not difficult for me, but it is becoming difficult to express my feelings as a donor. I have a son, but Vanshika is my daughter."

Oblivious to the surcharged atmosphere, the little ones played with their parents. They wore T-shirts emblazoned with the words, "I am a fighter."

Janvi Rohra, Vanshika's mother, said Kakkar had saved her daughter. "She has given a second life to her," Janvi said. Ragini Shankar, Disha's mother,thanked stem cell donor 35-year-old Prakash Kumar, for saving her daughter.

Kumar said he was trying not to cry. "I did not know where my blood stem cells were going a year back. Now that, I know Disha this day, it is just mind-blowing experience," Kumar, working at a private firm, said.

Datri Co-founder and CEO Raghu Rajagopal said such occasions further motivate his team to work harder in finding a match for every patient in need. There are around 2000 patients waitlisted on the registry, he added.

(With inputs from agencies.)