TV Journalist Undergoes Stem Cell Procedure for Ailing Stranger

When Jenny Glick swabbed her cheek to be added to the Gift of Life Bone Marrow registry, it never even crossed her mind she could actually be someone’s match.

But seven years after participating in the drive held at the Park Heights Jewish Community Center, her phone rang. On the other end of the line was a voice informing her that a patient was in need of her donation.

“My phone blew up in mid-November 2017 with calls, texts and emails from Gift of Life,” says Glick, a Baltimore Hebrew congregant, veteran local TV journalist and affiliate professor at Loyola University Maryland. “Once I got the call, I knew I was definitely going to donate. My husband is a pediatric oncologist, so for me there was no way I was going to say I wouldn’t donate.”

On the morning of Dec. 20, Glick and her husband, Dr. Jason M. Fixler, made their way to MedStar Georgetown University Hospital, where she underwent a six-hour outpatient procedure to retrieve her stem cells — a donation that will hopefully save the life of a 52-year-old man battling blood cancer.

“I was nervous because I’m terrified of needles and all things blood,” says Glick, 47, a mother of two who lives in North Baltimore. “But I’m so glad I did it. It makes you feel good to do something like this for someone you don’t know. Of course, you would do it for someone you love, but it’s harder to give a part of your body to a nameless, faceless person. I’m really grateful I had the opportunity.”

The Boca Raton, Fla.-based Gift of Life was founded in 1991 by the nonprofit’s CEO, Jay Feinberg, when he was diagnosed with leukemia. Feinberg was told he needed to find a bone marrow match in order to save his life, but he couldn’t find anyone among those he knew. His family and friends started holding drives to help find a donor, which he found four years later.

“Only 30 percent of matches are found within a family,” says Marti Freund, director of community engagement at Gift of Life. “That means 70 percent of the population has to find an unrelated donor from a registry to save their life. Criteria and matching is based on ethnicity, meaning those of similar ancestry and background will usually match those of the same background.”

Since its inception, Gift of Life has been dedicated to curing blood cancer through bone marrow and stem cell transplants. To join the registry, you have to be between the ages of 18 and 45 and remain on the registry until the age of 61.

The process to join is simple — a potential donor swabs the inside of their cheek and answers a questionnaire. The swab is tested by a lab for genetic markers and is added to the international database. According to Gift of Life, over time there is just a 10 percent chance of being called back as a possible match.

“There are 30 million people in our worldwide registry and we have facilitated 3,200 transplants since its founding,” says Freund. “We are about the power of one. It really only takes one person to make a difference and save a life.”

Prior to her donation, Glick had to undergo a handful of tests to ensure she was completely healthy and an exact match. Five days before she donated, she received injections to prepare her body for the procedure — called a peripheral blood stem Donation — in which blood is drawn from one arm, processed through a machine to remove the stem cells, and then replaced into the donor’s body.

“It’s not terribly painful when you are sitting there,” says Glick. “I hope other people will be like me and conquer their fears over needles and blood because it was 100 percent worth it.”

Once the donation process is complete, the stem cells are packed on ice and couriered to wherever in the world the recipient is located. The transplant occurs immediately thereafter.

“I hope the recipient is well. Gift of Life says I may find out how he is doing one month after the transplant.” says Glick. “It would be nice to think something I did helped someone go back to their normal life and to the people that love him. Everyone has someone who loves him or her.”

While the transplant isn’t a guarantee the recipient will survive, it’s his or hers only hope. For Glick, that hope was enough for her to go through with the donation.

“This was hard for me, but sometimes the most worthwhile things in life are the hardest,” she says. “If you can make a significant difference in someone else’s life, the mild discomfort is completely worth it.”

To learn more about how you can become part of the Gift of Life Registry, visit giftoflife.org.

Aliza Friedlander is a Baltimore-based freelance writer.