Emily Coiro, and Julie Zgoloa, nurses at Hackensack Meridian John Theurer Cancer Center, made the remarkable action of becoming bone marrow donors themselves.
Both Cioro and Zgoloa have experience with helping patients navigate the process of bone marrow transplants. But they themselves have never had the chance to be a match for a patient until now.
Cioro was stoked to see the opportunity in real time.
“The idea that my cells could give someone their life back is something I’ll never stop being grateful for,” she said. “The moment I heard I was a match. I was so excited, I didn’t even need time to think. I said yes before they even finished their sentence!”
Zgoloa further echoed this sentiment.
“My colleagues and I were in shock,” she said. “We played the voicemail three or four times because we were like, ‘What in the world? How is this possible?’ It was amazing, especially working on the transplant unit, to get a call to be a bone marrow donor.”
John Theurer Cancer Center at Hackensack University Medical Center, which serves as a collection facility and is one of only two FACT accredited transplant programs in the state.
The Hackensack site has performed more than 8,000 blood and marrow transplant cases over the last 30-plus years and has been an early leader in BMT and cellular therapy research.
