Sponsored by
Transplant gave me back my life
Few people think about what will happen to their bodies after their death but thousands more patients could be given the gift of life if more people signed the donor register.
Proposals to boost the number of transplants by 1,200 a year have been backed by the Government but a system of 'presumed consent' – which would mean everyone would be a donor unless they chose to opt out instead of the current system of opting in – is still being discussed.
Helen Beighton reports on the experience of one Chesterfield family whose lives have been transformed by a transplant.
For more than two years Michael Shaw spent much of his week wired up to a dialysis machine, too tired to walk his dog, unable to eat a decent meal and waiting for the hospital to call.
He was 44 when, in January 1998, the call finally came – a donor kidney had become available and Michael was to be given the chance to get his life back.
Michael, now 54, of Forest Drive, Pilsley, has an inherited, incurable condition called polycystic kidney disease. It causes fluid-filled cysts to develop in the kidneys which, in turn, causes kidney failure.
A transplant is the only long-term solution for sufferers.
Michael's condition was diagnosed about a decade before his life-saving surgery took place.
It was ten years in which his health slowly deteriorated, culminating with him having to have long spells of dialysis.
"I gradually got worse and worse," he said.
"I lost my appetite, was on a special diet, didn't want to do much and was tired all the time.
"My body was being poisoned slowly by the toxins and I was even changing colour, going a yellowy-brown colour.
"Dialysis was tiring in itself.
"Initially, I was hoping they could find a donor quickly, which would solve my problems, but as time went on I pushed it to the back of my mind and got into a routine, getting on dialysis and then feeling better for a bit afterwards."
Death's door
The dialysis treatment was vital to keep Michael alive but was time-consuming and limited the time he could spend with his wife Jean and children, Christopher (32), Dawn (30) and Lee (23).
Jean (52) said: "It was very difficult. You cannot keep a family life really at all.
"It was very worrying. If we went on holiday we had to inform the hospital where we were going and Michael had to book into a local hospital for dialysis."
When the call finally came from staff at Sheffield's Northern General Hospital that a donor kidney was available, Michael rushed in and had the transplant the next day.
He said: "I was in hospital for over seven weeks but have been okay since I came out.
"You cannot describe the improvement it has made. One minute you're at death's door just clinging on and the next you're nearly normal.
"You think of life totally differently. You go to work to pay the bills – you aren't bothered about lots of money anymore. Health is more important."
Michael now leads a completely normal life, working full-time and able to do the things he enjoys doing, and has been around to witness the birth of his three grandchildren.
He said: "I have got grandkids now and can play football or go for a walk with them and take the dog a walk which I couldn't before.
"I would definitely be ill and may not even be here now without the transplant. I am just so grateful that I have had this opportunity."
Jean added: "I hope that our donor family know how grateful we are for their generous gift. We will never forget their selfless act and they are always in our thoughts."SURVIVOR'S FAMILY BACK CHANGES TO DONOR SCHEME
After seeing first-hand how organ donation can dramatically change someone's life, Michael and Jean Shaw are fully behind the idea of a presumed consent donor scheme.
They feel that some good can come out of the tragic circumstances of somebody's death if their organs can be used to save the lives of others.
Jean said: "If people could see what a difference giving an organ makes they would not think twice.
Guilty
"I think a lot of people have no objection to having their organs used after death but just don't take the time to do anything about it.
"I am guilty of that as well, as until it affected us I never picked a donor card up or joined the register."
Because of general public apathy, Jean is convinced that an opt-out donor programme is the answer – giving people opposed to donating the option to withdraw – meaning that the majority of the population would be potential donors.
"A lot of people have the impression the body is being mutilated but that's not how it works," she added.
"The donor is treated with as much respect as the recipient.
"It's just such a waste if organs are not donated – those parts of the body are not what make a person a person and can make such a difference.
"I would urge people to sign up and talk about donating with your family as, even if you are on the register, your family can still object."
Michael is also keen to encourage people to sign the donor register, in case presumed consent is not made law.
He said: "I am hoping people will actually think about what can happen and what they can do.
"From my point of view, I am glad that somebody did that and put their name on the register. They have saved my life and brought it back to what it was.
"It has definitely made a massive difference."
To join the donor register visit www.uktransplant.org.uk or call 0845 60 60 400.DID YOU KNOW...?
A donor can donate a heart, lungs, two kidneys, pancreas, liver and small bowel and can restore the sight of two people by donating their corneas.
Donors can also give bone and tissue such as skin, heart valves and tendons. Skin grafts have helped people with severe burns and bone is used in orthopaedic surgery.
The age profile of people who have donated organs after their death has changed in the past decade with more aged over 50 and fewer younger donors. Older donors are less likely to be able to donate as many of their organs as younger people as some organs may become less suitable for transplantation as people age. But organs from people in their 70s and 80s are transplanted successfully.
The number of people needing a transplant is expected to rise steeply over the next decade due to an ageing population, an increase in kidney failure and scientific advances resulting in more people being suitable for a transplant.
The number of living donor kidney transplants has more than trebled since 1995 and now account for nearly one in three of all kidney transplants.
The oldest solid organ donor ever recorded in the UK was 84.
The oldest recorded cornea donor was 103.
The oldest recorded recipient of an organ in the UK was an 85-year-old kidney patient.
The oldest recipient of a cornea transplant in the UK was 104.
Surgical techniques, such as splitting livers, have meant that a donor can help more patients than ever before.
Email to a friend
Print this page
Looking for...
Featured advertisers
Jobs
Search for a job
Motors
Search for a car
Property
Search for a house
Weather for Chesterfield
Thursday 24 May 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 12 C to 24 C
Wind Speed: 10 mph
Wind direction: North east
Tomorrow
Sunny
Temperature: 10 C to 20 C
Wind Speed: 16 mph
Wind direction: East
