Marc Munro, Tank Crewman, Royal Scots Dragoon Guards, Region: Arbroath, Scotland
‘I’d definitely do it again – being a donor is an incredibly worthwhile thing to do. You’re giving up one day of your life to save someone else’s life, and it didn’t even hurt.’
I joined the Anthony Nolan Trust’s bone marrow register about three years ago when they held a clinic in Germany where I’m stationed. What I really liked about it is that, unlike most charities where you give money and don’t see the direct results, if you actually get asked to donate, you know that you’re potentially saving someone’s life. There’s surely nothing else like it you can do. I’m not usually lucky, so I never thought I’d actually get asked to donate.
Over the next couple of years I got down to the final stages twice but in the end didn’t get asked to donate, so when The Anthony Nolan Trust rang in March to say I might be a match. I felt so lucky and privileged. It’s really tough being in Iraq – getting cracking good news like that makes a massive difference.
They don’t let people go easily when you’re on tour in Iraq, but my bosses were incredibly supportive. Within four hours they cleared it and within a week they flew me back to London.
The whole thing was so easy. A nurse came and gave me some injections three days before, and then another one the day before. The injections were ok – I got a bit of a headache, but the nurse said that’s normal in young people. I’ve had worse hangovers though – it was nothing that a paracetamol couldn’t sort out!
I went in just for the day. I was a bit nervous the day before, wondering whether it would be painful and whether it would all go to plan. But it went fine. The staff were really friendly and there was someone else doing it at the same time.
It only took about three or four hours – it’s not that different to giving blood but over a longer period of time. There was no pain whatsoever – my arms were a bit stiff but that was it. I felt so good afterwards.
I was back home in Germany within two days and I felt completely fine. The most amazing thing is that you know your bone marrow is going straight off to someone who urgently needs it. You know you’re potentially saving a life.
