Emilia is searching for her match

“I was just so tired all the time,” says mum of two Emilia. “I would feel tired at the wheel, and I’d even fallen asleep watching panto with my boys. So I went in and got my bloods checked on a Monday morning. By tea time, I was in hospital having a blood transfusion, and the very next day I found out I had acute myeloid leukaemia.”

Over the summer she’d noticed she was exceptionally tired, but initially she put this down to early starts with her two young boys – Henry, 6, and Felix, 4 – and her work as a nurse. However, this got worse, and she also developed pounding headaches, which last December led to her seeing her GP for a blood test.

Emilia’s diagnosis was particularly hard for her family, as they have already been impacted by cancer.

“It’s been tough for my husband Ben and our boys,” says Emilia. “Ben’s mum passed away 3 years ago after a very short battle with cancer, and then in January 2025, my mum was diagnosed with breast cancer for the second time and had major surgery of a mastectomy and reconstruction. Also Ben’s dad has a chronic leukaemia, so it feels like our whole family has been affected. Knowing that the cancer I have is treatable with a stem cell transplant has meant a lot to us, and I’m hopeful that I’ll have a matching donor soon so I can get back to normal life.”

Selflessly, Emilia is working with DKMS to encourage more people to join up to the stem cell donor register.

Are you aged 17–55 and in good health? Click the 'Become a donor' button to join the stem cell donor register today.