A BUCKLEY man who beat cancer twice thanks to a German stranger is urging people to check they are eligible to help save lives.

Back in 2019, Matt Davies was given 12-months to live without a stem cell transplant after a devastating diagnosis of leukaemia.

Wife Sarah Davies urged people to sign up to become a donor, which could save the lives of many people – and over 7,000 had signed up from her link alone.

Before Christmas, Matt was given the news that there was a match for him and he could start his treatment in January.

September marks Blood Cancer Awareness Month and the family is urging people to check they are eligible to become a stem cell donor which will help save lives.

Sarah said many people do not realise blood cancer is the fifth most common type of cancer, and the third biggest cancer killer in the UK - with 28 people being diagnosed with leukaemia every day in the country.

Matt has beat leukaemia twice, and owes everything to the 28-year-old German man who donated his stem cells and saved Matt's life.

Sarah told the Leader: "Matt is doing fantastic, 19 months since his stem cell transplant and he is still cancer free. He is now back to work full time and completely off his steroids which took longer than expected as he has Chronic GvHD.

"Matt was shielding at home and I was working from home through out the whole of lockdown but we've enjoyed a fun filled six weeks whilst the kids have been off school.

"My sister has a cake shop in Mold called Cravin and they are fundraising this month with a raffle and all proceeds going to The Christie Hospital which is one of Europe's leading Cancer Centres where Matt had all of his previous treatment and has regular check ups and bone marrow tests.

"We try and share posts now encouraging people to check if they are eligible and register on the stem cell donor list via www.dkms.org.uk.

"I know DKMS UK (an international charity dedicated to the fight against blood cancer) have said so far this year they've only received 50% of swab kits back that they have sent out."

To check if you are eligible requires a quick swab around the mouth and you're done. Then if you ever get that "call" and the chance to save someone's life it is 'literally like giving blood' with no operations or days/weeks off work, said Sarah.

She added: "Some may say I'm scared of needles but put yourself in a cancer patient's shoes and think how scared they are of dying.

"If you can donate blood, donate platelets and join the donor list then please do."

More than half of British adults cannot name any symptom of blood cancer, a survey has suggested as a charity warned some of the signs could be being mistaken for coronavirus.

The percentage of people saying they did not know any symptoms of the third biggest cancer killer in the UK has risen since a similar survey three years ago.

The Blood Cancer UK charity said the lack of public awareness of the condition is “extremely worrying”. Their poll of 2,035 in Great Britain found that 56% said they did not know any symptoms, up from 52% of people asked the same question in 2018.

Breathlessness was a symptom identified by just 3%, prompting concerns from the charity that this sign, as well as fever and tiredness, could be confused with Covid-19 symptoms and left undiagnosed.

The organisation said awareness of other symptoms had remained similar to 2018 levels.

Kate Keightley, head of support services at the charity, said: “Sadly, symptoms such as fatigue, weight loss and night sweats can sometimes be dismissed or downplayed and the result can be devastating.

“During the height of the pandemic, we saw far fewer people being diagnosed with blood cancer, and one of the reasons for this could be that some of the symptoms of blood cancer are easily mistaken for Covid.

“It’s extremely worrying that public awareness that these could be signs of blood cancer continues to be so low.”

She urged anyone who thinks they have symptoms that cannot be explained and are persistent to “urgently” make an appointment with their GP.

The charity said blood cancer symptoms can be varied and often very vague and include persistent and unexplained tiredness, unexplained weight loss, unexplained bruising and/or bleeding, persistent infection, breathlessness, drenching night sweats, lumps or swellings in the neck, head, groin or stomach, and bone or joint pain.