A Perfect Match: How a Pair of Bulls Donated Their Stem Cells to Help Save Lives
11/24/2019 12:00:00 PM | Football
Thanksgiving is a time for families to gather together and express their gratitude for all they have been given. This year, two families will have a special reason to be grateful thanks to the selfless acts of a pair of University at Buffalo football players.
Through the Be The Match program, senior linebacker Matt Otwinowski and senior offensive lineman Michael Kenefick donated stem cells to help save the lives of two of the 14,000 people every year in the United States who need a bone marrow transplant.
"A lot of us have signed up with The Be Match program and had our DNA swabbed and put in the registry," Kenefick said. "I was a match with someone, and I'm glad I was able to help."
Kenefick, who only had a few games left in his collegiate career, chose to miss the team's game at Kent State on November 14 to travel to Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, NY and donate his stem cells.
"I've played a lot of games and I obviously wanted to be with my teammates, but when I was given this opportunity, I felt I had to do it," Kenefick added.
Otwinowksi was the first player to be matched and make the donation. He traveled to Washington, DC in April for the six-hour procedure that involved taking blood from one arm, cycling it through a blood separator to remove the stem cells and then having it replaced in the other arm.
Neither player knows the person who received their donation. After one year, there is a chance they can meet the recipient and both players would welcome the opportunity.
"I don't know who the person is and I can't tell you anything about him," Otwinowski said. "That guy probably has a family and if I can give my bone marrow and my time to help prolong his life, I just think that is the ultimate form of servitude. I was really excited to follow through with it."
Be The Match, operated by the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP), is a nonprofit organization that's dedicated to helping every patient get the life-saving transplant they need. As trusted leaders in advancing treatments for those facing life-threatening blood cancers, we provide the ground-breaking research, innovative technologies, patient support and education that save lives.
For more information on Be The Match or to find out how you can donate, please click here.
Through the Be The Match program, senior linebacker Matt Otwinowski and senior offensive lineman Michael Kenefick donated stem cells to help save the lives of two of the 14,000 people every year in the United States who need a bone marrow transplant.
"A lot of us have signed up with The Be Match program and had our DNA swabbed and put in the registry," Kenefick said. "I was a match with someone, and I'm glad I was able to help."
Kenefick, who only had a few games left in his collegiate career, chose to miss the team's game at Kent State on November 14 to travel to Strong Memorial Hospital in Rochester, NY and donate his stem cells.
"I've played a lot of games and I obviously wanted to be with my teammates, but when I was given this opportunity, I felt I had to do it," Kenefick added.
Otwinowksi was the first player to be matched and make the donation. He traveled to Washington, DC in April for the six-hour procedure that involved taking blood from one arm, cycling it through a blood separator to remove the stem cells and then having it replaced in the other arm.
Neither player knows the person who received their donation. After one year, there is a chance they can meet the recipient and both players would welcome the opportunity.
"I don't know who the person is and I can't tell you anything about him," Otwinowski said. "That guy probably has a family and if I can give my bone marrow and my time to help prolong his life, I just think that is the ultimate form of servitude. I was really excited to follow through with it."
Be The Match, operated by the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP), is a nonprofit organization that's dedicated to helping every patient get the life-saving transplant they need. As trusted leaders in advancing treatments for those facing life-threatening blood cancers, we provide the ground-breaking research, innovative technologies, patient support and education that save lives.
For more information on Be The Match or to find out how you can donate, please click here.
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