Nick Teo donates stem cells: '6 hours of my life to give someone else a 2nd chance at theirs'

A simple cheek swab done with his wife ended with Nick Teo helping to save someone's life.

In an Instagram post today (Oct 21), the 37-year-old local actor revealed he had recently donated his stem cells to "someone I've never met", an experience he described as "six hours well spent".

He shared that while the idea sounded daunting at first, he found the process was much simpler than he had thought.

He wrote: "The actual donation was a little like donating blood, taking about six hours of my life to give someone else a second chance at theirs."

According to information on Mount Elizabeth's website, a stem cell transplant replaces damaged or diseased bone marrow with healthy stem cells and it is a critical treatment for patients with certain blood cancers or marrow failure syndromes, where the body's ability to produce healthy blood cells is compromised.

Nick also addressed common misconceptions about stem cell and bone marrow donation, particularly myths that the procedure affects fertility.

He said: "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 don't let rumours stop you from finding out the facts!"

Nick married local actress Hong Ling, 32, in 2023, and announced they are expecting their first child in an Instagram post last month.

He documented his donation journey in a video montage, revealing he needed a series of injections to increase the number of stem cells in his body before the donation could take place, adding that his first injection was done with Hong Ling's help.

"Not gonna lie, I was quite nervous at first. But after going through the whole process, I realised it wasn't as scary as I thought," he admitted.

He added that after taking a few days to recover post donation, he was able to return to work as usual.

The video also included snippets of him sparring with local actor Tyler Ten in what appeared to be a boxing scene for the recently concluded Mediacorp crime drama In His Hands.

He said in the video: "A lot of people think that after donating your bone marrow, your body becomes weaker. But look at me, I'm still filming fight scenes!"

"To me, it was just a small part of my life, but to someone else, it could mean getting a second chance at life."

Thanking Hong Ling for the nudge, he admitted that he would not have signed up for it otherwise but is glad that he did.

Encouraging others to consider becoming donors as well, he wrote: "If you've 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."

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by 张奕恺 Nick (@nickk_teo)

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