A Surrey woman has donated millions of stem cells to a stranger after discovering she was a match just months after joining the donor register.

Sophie Eliadis had only recently turned 21 when she received the call telling her she could potentially help save the life of someone with blood cancer or a blood disorder.

“I was so happy,” said Sophie, of Woking. “It’s such an honour to get the call and be able to help someone.”

Sophie had signed up to a UK stem cell donor register but never expected to be called upon so quickly.

Stem cells, which are made in bone marrow, are used to treat people with blood cancers and other serious blood disorders.

She travelled to the Anthony Nolan Cell Collection Centre in Nottingham, where millions of stem cells were collected from her blood during a donation session lasting several hours.

The cells were then due to be given to the anonymous patient she had been matched with.

The Nottingham centre is Anthony Nolan’s first dedicated stem cell collection facility of its kind in England and began welcoming donors last year.

But Sophie decided to go a step further.

As well as donating stem cells to the patient, she provided an additional blood sample to researchers studying how stem cell transplants can be made safer and more successful in the future.

The research is particularly important because, despite major advances in stem cell transplantation, patients can still suffer serious complications after receiving donated cells.

One of these is graft-versus-host disease, in which the donated cells attack the patient’s healthy tissue.

Researchers hope studying donors such as Sophie will improve their understanding of transplantation and help doctors make better matches between patients and donors.

Anthony Nolan was founded after Shirley Nolan began searching for a donor for her son Anthony, who had a rare blood disorder. The charity went on to establish the world’s first stem cell donor register and has since helped facilitate tens of thousands of transplants.

Sophie's donation came as the charity marked 30 years of its research work into improving stem cell transplantation.

Her experience also put Sophie in the national spotlight when she appeared on BBC Breakfast on August 27 as part of a report highlighting the charity’s work and encouraging more people to join the stem cell register.

Sophie agreed to take part in the programme in the hope of raising awareness and encouraging others to consider becoming donors.

Her sister Emily Eliadis said Sophie received the news that she was a match only a couple of days after her 21st birthday.

She said Sophie readily agreed both to help the patient and contribute to research.

Emily added that she hoped her sister’s story would highlight her kindness as a local Woking girl.