by Dave Burke

dave.burke@essnmedia.co.uk

It takes a special kind of person to save the life of someone you have never met.

But that is exactly what Kamisha Guthrie did after her bone marrow donation saved the life of an American leukaemia sufferer.

The 28-year-old from South Croydon this week described the process as "no big deal".

She decided to tell her story in the hope it will persuade "as many people as possible" to follow her lead and help save the life of six-year-old Imogin Appiah and others like her.

Imogen, of Aurelia Road, desperately needs to find a suitable bone marrow donor as she embarks on a fresh round of chemotherapy.

"It's such a small thing to do," Kamisha said, of becoming a donor.

"Given that we've been given the gift of life, to help someone in their fight for life is nothing."

The trainee psychologist registered as a potential bone marrow donor when she was just 18.

Her cousin, Daniel De-Gale, was battling leukaemia at the time and she was desperately hoping to be a match.

Although she wasn't, Kamisha learned six years after registering that she was a match for a woman in America, whose life depended on a successful bone marrow transplant.

After a series of blood tests to check her bone marrow was suitable, Kamisha made the donation at the University College Hospital, in London.

"I was really excited to have the opportunity," she said.

"There are a lot of myths about the process, but none of them are true.

"It was just like a blood test, they just took the blood from my pelvic bone, there was no chopping and no cutting at all.

"I expected to be in a lot more pain."

Kamisha still knows precious little about the person whose life she saved, other than that she was an American woman in her twenties.

But knowing she is a lifesaver is enough reward.

With tiny Imogin so bravely battling leukaemia, Kamisha is urging more people to register as donors.

She said: "For people who are in doubt or unsure, they just need to think what it would be like for them if they needed a transplant and had to rely on someone else, but people were too scared."

Kamisha adds that potential donors do not need to worry if they drink or smoke.

Echoing that message is Daniel De-Gale's mum Beverley.

Sadly Daniel passed away in October last year from multiple organ failure, having won his battle against leukaemia in 1999.

Beverley told the Advertiser: "Thanks to the transplant, he had nine years that he wouldn't have had."

On Wednesday (April 29) a bone marrow registration drive is being held at Imogin's school, Elmwood Infants, in Lodge Road, Broad Green, between 2.30pm and 7.30pm.

*For information about the event at Elmwood call 020 8240 4480 or go to www.aclt.org.