Stem Cell Recipient Meets Queens Man Who Saved His Life
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Two strangers are bonded for life.
On Sunday, a stem cell donor from Queens met the man whose life he saved through a stem cell transplant, CBS2's Christina Fan reported.
On the first night of Chanukah -- a holiday that celebrates miracles -- the two strangers celebrated their own.
Ehud Kadry is a 27-year-old father from Queens. Paul Kaplowitz is a 69-year-old pediatric oncologist from Virginia. They were meeting for the first time, but were already deeply connected.
"I was living sort month-to-month hoping against hope that this would work out and now a year later I feel like I may be cured and I can really enjoy my retirement," Kaplowitz said.
MORE: Queens Man Finally Meets Stem Cell Donor 3 Years After Life-Saving Transplant
Kaplowitz suffered from a type of bone marrow disease that if left untreated could have progressed into leukemia. He said Gift of Life Marrow Registry helped match him to Kadry, a stem cell donor who brought him light in a time of darkness.
"I just found out that he has two kids in and four grandkids. Without a donor for him, who knows what would've been?" Kadry said.
If you want to join the registry, all it takes is a simple cheek swab. There's only a 30% chance that you'll have a match in your family. So, 70% of people need to find a stranger willing to save their life.
"There are so many genetic factors that need to line up to be someone's perfect match, so this is really incredible," Gift of Life's Valerie Janovic said.
"It was meaningful to be able to meet him in person and find out why he was willing to do this for me," Kaplowitz added.
For Kadry, the answer was simple.
"So saving someone else's life," he said.
And gift them light.
If you join the registry, there is a 1 in 400 chance you could be someone's life-saving match.
