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Heartwarming meeting between a cancer survivor and her donor

On Saturday afternoon, 41-year-old Angela Kearns and her two sons finally got to meet the stranger who forever changed their lives through his generous donation...

On Saturday afternoon, 41-year-old Angela Kearns and her two sons finally got to meet the stranger who forever changed their lives through his generous donation.

Back in 2012, doctors diagnosed Kearns for a second time with acute leukemia. They told her she needed a bone marrow transplant.

Doctors warned Kearns and her family that the procedure for both her and the donor was a lengthy and risky one, and required a perfect donor match.

"We just had to take it one day at a time and just trust in them, the hospital, and the donor process," said Joy Hendrix, Kearns' mother.

Several months later, doctors found a perfect bone marrow match for Kearns.

His name is Matthew Sabongi and he's a medical student at Des Moines University. He first joined the University of Iowa's Marrow Donor Program in December 2011, but never imagined he would be a perfect match.

However, when the hospital called him, Sabongi was thrilled to be able to help in any way.

"The hospital had me talk to a pathologist, who was in charge of the donation, to tell me what are the risks were," Sabongi said. "At the end of the day I said, you know what, I'm just going to do it anyway. I just thought it was a great opportunity to really help somebody."

Through his donation, doctors were able to perform the transplant that eventually saved Angela's life.

Now, after years of treatment and recovery, Kearns and her sons had the chance to meet Sabongi for the first time.

"Thank you so much, thank you," said Kearns as she hugged Sabongi for the first time.

"Knowing that there is somebody who would take the time to save someone's life, it's just awesome that somebody would do that," Kearns said.

Sabongi said he didn't think anything of it.

"The reason why I went into medical school is because I wanted to help people and hopefully save somebody's life." Sabongi said. "At the end of the day I realized I didn't even need to go to medical school, I just did that."

The event was put on at the Colony Pumpkin Patch and Corn Maze in North Liberty, Iowa. The owner, Dean Colony, is also a bone marrow recipient. He designed this year's corn maze around the Be The Match bone marrow donation program and logo.

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