An American cancer patient who received life-saving stem cells from a Polish donor invited him to her wedding.
Emotional Meeting Between Donor and Recipient
The DKMS foundation emphasizes that any registered person can become a potential bone marrow donor and give a chance at life to those waiting for transplants. Kaedi Cacelaz from Chicago had a rare cancer. Doctors diagnosed her with myelodysplastic syndrome – a group of blood cancers characterized by abnormal blood cell production. The only method offering a chance of complete cure is a bone marrow transplant.
This year, Kaedi got married and invited her donor, Karol from Poland, to the ceremony. She shared the entire story on social media.
A Wedding Day Surprise
“He and his beautiful wife Dominika flew from Poland to meet face-to-face for the first time at our wedding. We managed to organize the most special surprise for our guests,” reads the Instagram post. “He donated his stem cells to a stranger in the US so I could have a future. Because of him, I’m here. Because of him, I got married. Because of him, I have a chance to live this life,” writes the woman.
Karol’s Plea to Guests
Karol from Poland appealed to the guests. “This doesn’t cost you anything,” he said.
On the shared video, we see Karol raising a toast for Kaedi. “I’m not a hero here, so please raise a toast for Kaedi. I’m also not good at speeches, so I’ll be brief. For me, giving is better than receiving. I am very grateful that I can be a part of this difficult but wonderful story with such an ending. I would like, dear guests, for all of you to consider registering as donors, because it doesn’t cost you anything, but it can mean everything to someone else. Somewhere out there, your Kaedi may still be waiting for you. Thank you and I wish you all a wonderful life together,” he said.
Polish Donor Statistics
In 2025, 110,000 people joined the database of potential bone marrow donors in Poland. Meanwhile, 1,795 people became actual donors, donating their stem cells or bone marrow, thus saving the lives of patients with blood cancers and other serious bone marrow diseases. At the end of the year, the database of potential donors in Poland numbered approximately 2,113,520 people.
