Normally, passengers reserve their cheers for the moment the plane touches down, but this weekend, on a United trip, they started clapping before the jet had even taken off.
This is because, just before takeoff, the pilot of the flight stepped out of the cockpit to welcome a brave traveler who also happened to be his bone marrow donor.
The pilot can be seen going across the cabin to embrace an unidentified young woman, whom he later names as his bone marrow donor, in a video captured by another traveler.
As they embraced, the pilot described his donor as a “true hero” and informed the other passengers that he had discovered she was on his flight just before takeoff.
Passengers seated around the couple applauded the touching exchange as he went on to say that the woman was a better fit than his own brother.
After eight years, the pilot said, “This is the young lady that saved my life,” referring to the woman who had given him bone marrow.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, the soft, spongy liquid tissue called bone marrow, which is found in the middle of some bones, produces more than 200 billion new blood cells every day. A bone marrow transplant or other stem cell transplant may be able to cure the bone marrow illness that around 18,000 people discover they have each year.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, roughly 30% of transplant recipients find a matching donor within their immediate family, while the remaining 70% must look for a matching donor outside of their immediate family. Bone marrow can be donated by anyone, however all donors need to fulfill specific health standards.
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