A Match Made in Medicine
Bone Marrow Donation from TouroCOM Student Matthew Chiffy Helps Toddler Battle Leukemia
When he was a pre-med student at SUNY Binghamton four years ago, Matthew Chiffy—today a second-year student at Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine Middletown—was walking downtown when he noticed a sign for Red Cross blood donation at the nearby American Legion Hall.
He made his way there and signed up to give blood. Before leaving though, he also joined the bone marrow registry of Gift of Life, a non-profit organization based in Florida that facilitates blood stem cell and marrow transplants.
“Gift of Life gave me the rundown, saying it can quite literally save someone’s life. They said matching was ‘super rare’ and it was very easy to sign up—just a cheek swab,” Chiffy recalled. “I thought it was a great cause. With very little risk to me, I could save someone’s life.”
A Match
Fast forward to fall 2025. In the midst of exams, Chiffy learned via text and then a phone call that he’d been matched with a two-year-old toddler with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), one of many conditions that can be treated with transplantation.
“They had said there was a one in 200 chance they’d have a match. When this child came in, I was the best for him,” said Chiffy, who was ready to go forward whenever the child’s surgeon was ready.
He had some knowledge of what was involved, since his cousin underwent a similar bone marrow transplant.
There would be weeks of pre-op testing, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy to receive the donation. The parties continued to work out logistics and a few months later, Chiffy was on a plane to MedStar Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C., known for its specialized transplant programs.
It turned out to be a three-day trip, all expenses paid for him and his mother, who was “a little nervous” about the fact that he’d be going under general anesthesia. The surgeon used a needle to remove liquid marrow from the back of his pelvis during an hour-long procedure, after which he experienced mild soreness but no pain, and he was even able to explore Washington, D.C., a bit for the first time.
“The whole experience was really cool,” he said. “They had everything planned for me. The hospital staff were really nice and let me know how important it is to have donors like me to save lives like [those of] this child.”
Donations at TouroCOM
TouroCOM Middletown holds two blood drives a year and sponsors a bone marrow donation annually. Still, the school was not aware of Chiffy’s match until he sought an excused absence to travel to make the donation.
“I was blown away, quite frankly,” said Associate Dean of Students Francis Rose, Jr., who was consulted by Chiffy for the excused absence. “It’s so commendable and heartwarming. We’re proud of him for doing this and he’s not boastful about it. To know we have students like him here re-establishes your faith in humanity. He chalks it up to ‘no big deal.’”
For his part, Chiffy says he looks forward to hearing how the child is doing and hopes to be able to send an email or letter to the family.
“Hopefully, this child and my cousin should be able to live normal lives. It was a unique experience to be able to have that much of an impact not only on the child but the family as a whole,” he said. “I’m still in the national registry so if someone is a match for me, they’d reach out to me and I would 100% do it again. It made me feel really good.”
