Sofia Sarno, 22 and Katerina Yiakoumi, 25 are raising vital funds for blood cancer charity Anthony Nolan. They will be skydiving on 26th August 2019.
Skydiving is something the cousins have always wanted to do, promising they would do this together once Sofia turned 18. After Katerina started working at Anthony Nolan, they knew they wanted to raise funds for the charity.
Anthony Nolan finds and matches donors, of the correct tissue types, with patients with blood cancers and disorders who need lifesaving stem cell transplants giving them a second chance of life.
Anthony Nolan also carries out pioneering research to increase the success of stem cell transplants and supports patients through their transplant journeys.
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About Anthony Nolan
Anthony Nolan saves the lives of people with blood cancer. The charity uses its register to match potential stem cell donors to blood cancer and blood disorder patients in need of stem cell transplants. It also carries out pioneering research to increase stem cell transplant success, and supports patients through their transplant journeys. Every day Anthony Nolan gives three people a second chance at life. Find out more at www.anthonynolan.org
What is a stem cell transplant?
If a patient has a condition that affects their bone marrow or blood, then a stem cell transplant may be their best chance of survival. Doctors will give new, healthy stem cells to the patient via their bloodstream, where they begin to grow and create healthy red blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.
Key statistics
About 2,000 people in the UK need a stem cell transplant from a stranger every year 90% of donors donate through PBSC (peripheral blood stem cell collection). This is a simple, outpatient procedure similar to giving blood We need more young men to sign up, as they are most likely to be chosen to donate but make up just 18% of the register We need more people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds to sign up. Only 60% of transplant recipients receive the best match. This drops dramatically to around 20% (one in five of transplant recipients) if you’re from a Black, Asian or ethnic minority background. Blood cancer is the fifth most common type of cancer in the UK and the third biggest cancer killer. It accounts for 9% of all new cases of cancer diagnosed in the UK. It costs £40 to add each new donor to the register so we always need financial support To join the Anthony Nolan register, you must be 16-30 and healthy. Anthony Nolan’s world-leading Research Institute has shown younger donors offer better survival rates for patients.
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