Embrace expresses more than words for marrow donor who saved woman's life

BOSTON — It’s been nearly four years since a bone marrow donation saved Mandy Manocchio’s life, but the anticipation of the last few hours before she met the donor seemed like they took forever.

"When you hear that you have less than a year to live and your life's basically laying on the line and if I didn't find a donor it would've been catastrophic, but she's my angel,” she said.

At Brigham and Women's Hospital in November 2013, Mandy had a bone marrow transplant to treat acute myeloid leukemia - on Friday night at The Harp in Boston she finally got to meet Magdelena Kruger, the woman who saved her life.

"She allowed me to watch my children grow up and have another,” Mandy said.

Kruger had just landed after an 11-hour flight from Germany. When the two women saw each other there was no need for words.

Stem cells from Kruger were carried 4,000 miles from Germany. Through a translator, she said it was the first time she’d ever donated.

“I just wanted to help somebody who's sick and needs help,” she said.

Now both women are advocates for bone marrow donations. They say the process is relatively simple and life-changing on both ends.

"It's so rewarding to see that immediate result of how you can help somebody,” Kruger said.

To learn more about bone marrow donation or to register as a bone marrow donor, please visit dkms.org.

Cox Media Group