A 19-year-old named Thomas Rennie has been recognized for donating stem cells on five separate occasions.This remarkable feat has earned him the Donor Recognition Award at the annual Anthony Nolan Supporter Awards ceremony.

According to the Anthony Nolan charity,”This is the only donor we know of who has had this particular range of experience. Thomas’s contribution has been unprecedented, and he is a great advocate for Anthony Nolan.”

Stem Cell Basics

“It’s a bit bizarre really, because it doesn’t feel like I’ve done anything.”

Stem cells, vital for blood cell regeneration, are produced in the bone marrow. A stem cell transplant replaces damaged blood cells with healthy ones, benefiting patients with leukemia, lymphoma, and other blood disorders.

Thomas was inspired to join the stem cell register after hearing a transplant recipient’s story. “One of my school governors came in and he’d had a bone marrow transplant, and he basically spoke about how people should sign up because it saved his life,” says Thomas. “It had given him his whole life back, so I thought, ‘that sounds like a fun thing to do’, so I went on their website and filled in my details and they sent a cheek swab.”

He added, “It’s nice to know that I’ve hopefully given two people at least the chance to have a life, saved their life hopefully.”

Talia Adams from Anthony Nolan notes the rarity of Thomas’s multiple donations: “As far as our teams are aware, to be doing five donations is the most that we’ve seen… To be found to be a potential match again is really rare.”

Guy Parkes at NHS Blood and Transplant emphasizes the significance of Thomas’s actions: “Making this number of donations is certainly rare and is an amazing act of altruism and life-saving action. He has shown incredible dedication…We need more young men like Thomas to sign up to be potential stem cell donors.”

Reflecting on what his late friend Daniel would think,Thomas said,”He had a big heart and I’d like to think that he’d appreciate it… No-one should have to live with cancer and if there’s a way to help someone, I’d like to think that I’m able to do that.”