SINGAPORE: Actor Nick Teo is a true Good Samaritan who was brave enough to endure injections and donate his stem cells to save a life.
The 37-year-old Singaporean actor and his wife, fellow actress Hong Ling, 32, are currently expecting their first child.
On Oct 21, Teo shared a video on Instagram documenting his donation journey.
Addressing common myths about the procedure, he wrote: "I know there are many rumours about bone marrow donation, including that it affects fertility."
"And here I am, about to start a family of my own. So I get why people might have concerns. "But do not let rumours stop you from finding out the facts."
In the post, Teo tagged The Bone Marrow Donor Programme—an organisation managing Singapore's only register of volunteer bone marrow donors.
Their aim is to bring hope to patients with leukaemia and blood-related illnesses, with a goal of finding a match for every patient.
The clip shows Teo giving himself injections to increase the stem cell count in his blood prior to donation, with his wife helping him with the first jab.
He admitted: "I was quite nervous at first. But after going through the whole process, I realised it was not as scary as I thought."
"Even after giving himself another injection on a different day, he said he felt "quite okay".
In his caption, Teo explained that the actual donation felt similar to giving blood, "taking about six hours of my life to give someone else a second chance at theirs".
Addressing worries that donating makes a person weak, Teo shared that after a few days of rest, he was right back to doing what he loves. The video
Nick Teo has debunked bone marrow donation myths to save lives (INSTAGRAM/NICK TEO)
showed him filming a boxing scene for the Mediacorp crime drama In His Hands.
"But look at me," he added. "I am still filming fight scenes."
Teo ended his post by encouraging others to sign up as potential donors: "If you have ever thought about signing up, maybe this is your little nudge. A simple swab could lead to something life-changing. You never know whose life you might save."
"To me, donating stem cells was just a small part of my life.
"But to someone else, it could mean getting a second chance at life.
"And who knows? Maybe you could be someone's hope too," he added.
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