"All it takes is just two swabs"

Tuesday 18 February 2020

A local footballer, who was the first to sign up to a major stem cell donation campaign inspired by his best friend, has already shared a life-saving gift with a woman in need - and is urging others to help.

Tom Turquet (26) was the first person to add his name to the stem cell register as part of a partnership between the Jersey Friends of Anthony Nolan with the Jersey Football Association, which his best friend, Ben Hick, supported.

Ben was diagnosed with a rare genetic condition that severely weakens the immune system, when he was just one.

He received a life-saving stem cell donation at the age of 18 thanks to the Anthony Nolan charity, which uses its register to find and match potential stem cell donors of the correct tissue types with blood cancer and blood disorder patients who are in need of stem cell transplants.

Pictured: Ben on his transplant day.

Tom, who has known Ben for “many years” and played with him at St. Clement’s football club, says he was quite young when he heard about his condition and didn’t understand the seriousness of it at the time, although he remembers Ben being quarantined in his room and spending hours in the hospital for his treatments. 

When the Jersey Friends of Anthony Nolan came into the club, Tom says he already had it in his head to sign up, because he was so close to Ben and his family. 

He rubbed his cheeks with swabs, which the charity then sent away for testing. A couple of months later, Tom was asked to go to his GP to take blood samples. “Nervousness kicked in at that time,” he recalled to Express.

After various tests in a London clinic, Tom received several stem cells boosting injection.

“It was just a sharp pinch and I am possibly one of the worst people with needles,” he confessed. “The nurse made me feel very comfortable, she took the edge of the fact she was going to jab me.” 

Pictured: Last year, the Jersey Friends of Antony Nolan partnered with the Jersey Football Combination (JFC) to encourage local footballers to join the register.

The actual donation “didn’t hurt whatsoever”, Tom said, and he simply spent several hours at the clinic, with a drip in each arm.

“I just let it do its magic,” he explained. “It was taking blood, washing it to get the stem cells out and pumping it back. The boredom was the worst part.”  

“I felt fine, I didn’t feel tired,” Tom added. “My girlfriend had never been to London and Madame Tussauds was just across the park, so we went. It was just like a normal day.”

For the donation to be successful, five million stem cells were required, but Tom went above and beyond with the results showing 10 million. “The nurse was very professional, she didn’t show any emotion throughout the whole thing,” Tom said.

“When the results came through, she let out the biggest scream, ‘You have done it!’ She was dancing and singing. That’s when I realised how important this is to those people and how amazing this whole thing is.”

Pictured: Ben (front left) and Tom (front, second from right) with other donors and patients at the charity's 25th anniversary.

The following day, Tom says “everything was fine” and he went back to work.

With the team from the hospital and the Anthony Nolan charity looking after him so well during the whole experience, Tom says he would happily donate again tomorrow if he could – though he has to wait at least two years before he can do so. 

“It was such a coincidence that I was the first one to sign up and that they found a match,” Tom said. “But I had a gut feeling that if anyone was going to be called to donate, it would be me because of how many things linked together.

“I have seen [the effect of a donation] first-hand through Ben. He can live a normal life. To see him come leaps and bounds …The whole thing has been just crazy.”

After his donation, Tom received an anonymous card from the woman who received his stem cells. While he says he didn’t do it for recognition, he will happily speak to her if she wants to get in touch.

“I just want to know that it’s helped, that it worked,” Tom said. “I cannot stress enough that it’s not bad. I don’t know what I was so worried about. All it takes is just two swabs.”

Pictured: Tom received an anonymous card from the woman who received his stem cells.

Michael de la Haye, who donated stem cells in 2004 and then went on to become Chairman of JFOAN for a few years, echoes the same message.

“It was very simple,” he recalls. “I was very well looked after. It was not an inconvenience at all. I always wished I could have done it again. 

“I felt very good about doing it. The feeling of satisfaction is the only reward you need. It’s an amazing thing to be able to do it, especially without a cost to you.”

With the Jersey Friends of Anthony Nolan’s 26^th anniversary approaching, Tom - who has become an Ambassador -  and Michael have shared their experiences in the hope it will inspire islanders to sign up, as the search continues for a ‘Match for Tony’.

The 38-year-old father has Sézary Syndrome, a rare form of lymphoma, and his wife Osvlada has been championing the search for a potential lifesaver since he was diagnosed in October 2017.

Pictured: Osvalda and Tony Ferreira at a donor registration event.

Several appeals have been launched since, during which over 1,000 people signed up to the register.

While this has helped several patients find a donor, no match has been found for Tony so far.

Kate Baigent, who is in charge of donor recruitment, issued a reminder that matches are more likely with people of similar backgrounds and is therefore appealing to islanders of all ethnicities, aged 16 to 30, to sign up to the register.

“We need more people to become a donor to match people,” Osvalda said. “Some people have the time to wait and others don’t. It’s not every day that you have the chance to save someone’s life. 

“It’s good to have people ready for people who cannot wait. We have been lucky enough after all that doctors have been able to stabilise his condition, but some people end up not having their second chance.

“They are waiting and it’s the possible cure. It’s their second chance. Please become a stem cell donor.”

You can join the Anthony Nolan's stem cell register by clicking HERE.