A student named Kristina Zubareva from Russia was diagnosed with severe idiopathic aplastic anaemia in 2022. This rare and dangerous condition stops the bone marrow from producing enough blood cells. Doctors told Zubareva that her only chance of survival was a bone marrow transplant. But finding a matching donor is never easy, and the search often stretches across borders. Hope finally arrived for Kristina thousands of kms away in India. The donor turned out to be Dr Sameer Arora, a practising doctor from Gurgaon. 

The two, donor and recipient, met at a conference at the 2027 International Donor Registry Conference, and an emotional reunion between them has been going viral on social media. 

Watch viral video here

A meeting filled with emotions

In the video, Dr Arora is seen walking towards Zubareva, who was seated on stage, the entire audience watching in silence. The two embraced in a heartfelt hug that lasted long. Zubareva stood strong and healthy, proof of what the transplant had achieved.

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“I would like to say a big thank you to the donor for saving my life, and for being ready to make this sacrifice. I feel very blessed. I am very happy about it. And to the donor, I want to say, don’t be afraid, you should help a child or any person you can if you have the opportunity,” Zubareva said.

Speaking at the event, Dr Arora said, “I am basically a doctor, so I know what patients go through. If somebody has received your stem cells, the person should be in a healthy condition and should live a healthy life ahead. And now, when you see your recipient in a healthy condition, she is pursuing her studies, what more would you demand from God?” 

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The role of DATRI

Behind this story of survival was the quiet but powerful role of DATRI, India’s largest unrelated blood stem cell donor registry. 

Since starting in 2009, DATRI has helped over 1,622 people with successful donations and today has a network of more than 604,000 registered donors, according to its official website.