2023-12-15 05:00:00
A mother altruist who notably adopted five children from the DPJ with her husband believes she won the lottery when she saved the life of a complete stranger thanks to stem cell donation.
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“I was at the dentist when I received a text message “hello Valérie, you saved my life”,” says Valérie Albert, who lives in Saint-Jérôme.
In 2017, this 38-year-old young woman discovered that in addition to the blood donations she regularly makes, she can register on the list of stem cell donors. Without delay, she ordered the Héma-Québec kit to collect her DNA with her partner and thus put herself on the donor list. There are 41 million of them worldwide, including 55,000 in Quebec.
“In November 2021, I was called to say I was a match with someone who needed my cells. None of the treatments he had undergone to treat his cancer had worked, I was his last resort,” explains the woman who is a stay-at-home mother.
“For me, this call was like being told I had won the lottery. I was very happy to know that maybe I could save someone,” she continues.
Heart on hand
This young woman has always had her heart on her sleeve, says her partner of the last 18 years, Sébastien Pelletier. The couple, who have two biological children, have been welcoming five more until they come of age since 2021. They are all between 6 and 17 years old.
“It was she who always dragged me to go and donate blood or even start taking in children placed by the youth protection department,” continues Mr. Pelletier.
His altruism also pushes his children to want to donate blood as soon as they turn 18.
Still few donations
Before being asked to donate your stem cells, you must have DNA that resembles as closely as possible the person who is to receive the transplant.
“Each year, these donations help save around 21,000 people around the world,” explains Josée Larivée, spokesperson for Héma-Québec.
Two years after her stem cell donation, that’s when Valérie Albert knew that the process had worked when she received a first message from the recipient, an American from Tennessee, announcing the good news.
“Now he’s really like family to me. We plan to meet and I know that when we see each other, I will hug him,” says the woman who regularly texts her new friend.
First “moving” contact
For Richard Brown, 43, the road to recovery has not been easy.
Photo provided by Richard Brown
The first seven rounds of chemotherapy didn’t work, and he had to change insurance to cover the cost of the stem cell transplant.
“We found a 10/10 compatible donor for me, but he withdrew at the last minute. When we found out afterwards that Valérie was also, against all expectations, 10/10 compatible, it was incredible. »
Today, Mr. Brown is more than grateful for Valérie Albert’s gesture.
“Talking to him for the first time a year and a half later was very moving,” he adds.
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