General Hospital’s John J. York shares important new PSA

For General Hospital star John J. York, life is something to be treasured. The actor, who began playing Mac Scorpio in 1991, has gone through some tough times lately dealing with health issues. Aside from lifelong issues with Crohn’s Disease, York had also discovered that he had myelodysplastic syndrome and smoldering multiple myeloma which required a bone marrow transplant. He eventually was cleared to have a transplant, and it was successful. Now he’s appearing in a PSA to help raise awareness for ancillary issues with stem cell transplants.

He's using his experience to help others

General Hospital’s John J. York, who took a hiatus from the show to deal with his treatment and detailed his cancer journey for fans before returning, posted his new PSA to X, formerly Twitter. He captioned it, “Good morning ☀️Mark your calendars! February 17th is #GVHDDAY…a day to honor and support those living with graft-versus-host disease. Remember, no one has to face this alone. Resources and hope await at http://GVHDAlliance.org. #GVHDAlliance @nmdp_org”

In the video, he stated, “Hi, I'm John York. Blood stem cell transplants save lives. But sometimes they come with challenges like GVHD. It's common but manageable with the right support. That's where the GVHD Alliance comes in. They've got resources, answers, and a community ready to help. Don't face GVHD alone. Visit GVHDalliance.org to learn more. Stay strong.”

According to the Cleveland Clinic, GvHD stands for Graft vs Host Disease, in which, “The donated stem cells you receive during an allogeneic stem cell transplant view your body’s cells as a threat and attack. There are two main types of GvHD: acute GvHD and chronic GvHD. Treatments include drugs that suppress (calm) your immune system.” The site further explains that stem cells by themselves are immature cells, but when donated they become blood cells that have matured.

The site further explained, “In GvHD, the donated stem cells (graft) view the recipient’s cells (host) as an unfamiliar threat. As a result, the donated cells attack the recipient’s cells. This is why the disease is called ‘graft’ versus ‘host.’ ” The National Marrow Donor Program, or NMDP, produced the video and thanked York with the response, “Thanks so much for continuing to help us spread awareness, John! 💙 -Jordan.”

This wasn’t the first post that York shared about the topic. The General Hospital star previously tweeted, “@nmdp_org helped me find a matching donor but post blood and marrow complications remain. I’m helping the GVHD Alliance to help raise awareness for patient/family support. Visit http://GVHDAlliance.org to learn more today and follow my journey. #GVHDAlliance.”

His posts each shared different aspects of the issue with his second one stating, “Survivorship! About 5,000 adults are diagnosed with chronic graft-versus-host disease every year. Early detection is KEY to fighting this condition. Learn the symptoms and stay informed at http://GVHDAlliance.org. Awareness saves lives. #GVHDAlliance @nmdp_org.”

General Hospital fans were collectively incredibly happy for York, and noted that he looked great in the photos he shared of himself and in his PSA. One happy fan tweeted, “John, you are amazing. First of all you look fabulous and I only hope you feel as good as you look. How you went through that cancer you’re a trooper it’s so good to see you back acting and always trying to support other causes so wishing you health and happiness and I’m a GH fan.”

You can watch new episodes of General Hospital on ABC and Hulu.