September 30, 2025

Penelec’s Cy Carroll was a student athlete at Pennsylvania’s Thiel College in 2016 when he participated in his football team’s community service project: recruiting others on campus to become registered stem cell donors.

With a simple cheek swab, he registered to become one, too – because he liked the cause.

“It seemed like a worthy endeavor to me, though I’ve never known anyone who needed a stem cell transfer,” said Cy. “As time passed post-college, I honestly didn’t think much about it.”

Eight years later, that was all about to change.

Answering the call

As a Penelec Troubleman, Cy regularly responds to all kinds of calls on the job. “Calls are part of my routine,” he said. “But late last year, I received one that was a total surprise.”

It wasn’t from work. Instead, the National Marrow Donor Program (NMDP), a non-profit organization that connects blood cancer patients with life-saving stem cell donors, was reaching out. Cy was in their database as an active donor and had been identified as a potential match for a 50-year-old man who needed a stem cell transfer.

Florida bound for a cause

In the months that followed, NMDP kept in touch regularly, keeping Cy informed on the details of his donor procedure, including necessary requirements, medical evaluations and preparations, and travel and accommodation information. His donation was scheduled to take place in May 2025 at a medical facility in Boca Raton, Florida.

Cy worked with his supervisor to schedule the necessary time off from work. He would use all 16 hours of his company-allotted Volunteer Time Off (VTO) and additional Personal Time Off (PTO) to cover the travel duration, donation day and recovery period required.

Leading up to the procedure, he would also need to take three injectable shots a day for five days straight to prepare. The shots contained a drug called filgrastim that stimulates the release of stem cells into the blood.

“That was probably the worst part,” said Cy. “It made me feel nauseated and headachy – like a bad hangover. I had trouble sleeping and didn’t feel great during my flight to Florida, but I made it through.”

He arrived in Boca Raton one day before the procedure.

“From start to finish, my donation took a total of five hours,” explained Cy. “It wasn’t bad. I watched television as the time passed.”

During the process, blood is drawn intravenously, the stem cells present are separated by a machine and the remaining blood is returned to the donor in a seamless process.

The recipient then undergoes an infusion or implementation procedure to receive the extracted stem cells – in hopes they will travel to the bone marrow and start producing new, healthy cells.

“I was tired afterward, but started feeling better within two days,” said Cy, who rested and enjoyed some time in the sunshine state with his mother before returning home.

Register, donate … repeat?

Cy says, if the chance arose, he would donate stem cells again to help someone in need and doesn’t believe he’s a special case.

“Quite a few people do this – and that’s a good thing,” he said. “I’m glad I was a match for this man. Not much information was shared with me post-transfer, but I hope he’s doing well. NMDP is anticipated to update me on his status sometime in the next four months.”

For more information on stem cell donation, visit https://www.nmdp.org/*.

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