GRAND RAPIDS — When you think about saving a life, you might picture jumping from cliffs and swelling music in an action movie. But sometimes, saving a life can be a cheek swab, a little patience and saying "yes" when the call comes.
KAXE music producer and host of Headwaters and Minnesota Mixtape Malachy Koons signed up years ago to donate bone marrow and recently answered the call to give.
In a Morning Show interview, Malachy was joined by Molly Rocchio, operations director for the National Marrow Donor Program (formerly Be the Match).
How the registry works
Molly explained that about 70% of patients who need a blood stem cell transplant don’t have a fully matched donor in their family — that's where the NMDP registry comes in. A simple test can determine if you might one day be a match for someone in need.
"Who gets a call [that] says, 'Someone's sick,' and doesn't, you know, want to help?"Malachy Koons
Malachy signed up during college when he spotted a volunteer table on campus. He sent in his swab, forgot about it, and years later got the call: he was a match.
Many people assume bone marrow donation is painful and invasive. But today, about 90% of donations are done through peripheral blood stem cell donation, a process similar to donating plasma. For Malachy, it meant sitting still for a few hours with IVs in both arms.
"I would just tell people that it was not a painful or horrible experience in any way. You receive this drug which encourages your body to create more and more stem cells. It sends your bone marrow into like overdrive basically. And so you get a little bit of joint soreness, bone pain, they call it."
NMDP covers all travel and medical costs for donors — and even pays for a companion to travel with you.
Even with millions of people registered, there are still patients who don’t find a match. Because genetic markers are inherited, a diverse registry — with donors from all backgrounds — is critical. Molly shared that the ideal donors are between the ages of 18–30, but individuals can stay on the registry and donate up to their 61st birthday.
"If you think of it, we all have blood stem cells and bone marrow in our bodies that could really help a very ill patient. And these stem cells could then treat or cure that patient's life-threatening disease," Molly said. "When we reach out, answer the call like Malachy did. It's just so important that we hear back from people and we know what options we have for patients."
For Malachy, being a donor felt like a natural extension of something he already believed in: helping others when you can. "Who gets a call [that] says, 'Someone's sick,' and doesn't, you know, want to help?"
He also shared a personal connection. Years ago, he received an Achilles tendon transplant. For Malachy, donating bone marrow is paying forward a kindness someone else gave to him.
Molly said, "Malachy, thank you. It's so inspiring. It's just such a selfless act when somebody just steps up and donates to somebody that they don't even know. You really are a hero."
If you’re between 18 to 40 and healthy, you can sign up to join the registry at nmdp.org. It's quick, easy, and free — and it just might change (or save) someone's life.
And as Molly reminded us, if already registered, stay ready and stay reachable. That call might come at just the right time for someone who’s waiting.
Tell us a story when someone made a difference in your life!
