The Gift of Life for Local Hospital Worker

When Anthony Bryan, a local hospital worker from Newcastle was told his kidney had failed for a third time, he didn't think his next donor would be a living one.

In fact, in January 2009 Anthony's sister Julie became a live organ donor as she successfully donated one of her kidneys to her brother.

41 year old Anthony has been a kidney patient since he was a fifteen years old. He started on dialysis in 1989 when he was 22, and has had two successful kidney transplants in 1990 here in North Staffordshire and later in 2001 at the Queen Elizabeth hospital in Birmingham.

In September 2007, the day he and his wife Jo were taking their new baby home Anthony received the disappointing news that his second transplant kidney had gone into total failure and he was back on the National Transplant waiting list.

Anthony explained: "Having had two previous transplants from two deceased donors, and periods of renal dialysis in between, I was prepared for the road ahead and began renal dialysis 3 times a week at the Royal Infirmary. I underwent dialysis for about a year, and in that time my wife Jo and my sister Julie both offered to have compatibility testing for live organ donation. I was delighted at the prospect of not having to wait 2-3 years for a donor, and it was a total surprise and a little daunting when we discovered that both Jo and Julie were suitable donors".

After some long discussions weighing up the pros and cons the family and Julie agreed that Julie would become Anthony's live donor and with the help and support of the hospital's Transplant team and Dr Dominic deTakats, Consultant Renal Physician Julie embarked on 7 months of tests to ensure her compatibility and fitness for the procedure. Anthony said: “It wasn't an easy decision to accept Julie's help, especially when you think that to make me better she would become poorly for a while".

"Because I had had two previous transplants and my original kidneys were still in place I had to have one of the failed transplant kidneys removed to make room for the new one. I underwent the procedure known as a Nephrectomy in August 2008 whilst Julie was undergoing a whole range of tests. One 23 December 2008 both Julie and I had an appointment with Mr Mellor and Mr Reddy the Transplant Surgeons at the Queen Elizabeth hospital in Birmingham and we were given a date of Friday 9 January 2009 for our surgery".

Anthony and Julie successfully had their surgery on 9 January. Julie's kidney was removed by keyhole surgery and she was discharged home 4 days later and Anthony received the donor kidney and spent a couple of weeks in hospital before being discharged.

Anthony continued: "It was a huge relief to know that Julie was ok and we've both had fantastic care all the way through, with Dr Tomlinson, the transplant team and the surgeons at the Queen Elizabeth hospital. We are both recovering well and receiving great follow up care and support here in North Staffs.

Anthony's Consultant Dr Kerry Tomlinson said: "There are more than 9,000 people in the UK who need an organ transplant that could save or dramatically improve their life. Most are waiting for a kidney, others for a heart, lung or liver transplant. But less than 3,000 transplants are carried out each year and some people never receive the transplant they are waiting for”.

Anthony said: "I have been lucky enough to have received three kidneys from both deceased and living donors and I firmly believe that it is the greatest gift you can give to someone. We all know there is a shortage of donors on the Organ Donor Register, and whilst deceased organ donation is a difficult issue for most of us, it is based on individual beliefs and it is definitely better to have made your wishes known to your family beforehand, rather than have them placed in a very difficult position, should the situation arise, where they must consider something so painful when they are grieving for the loss of a loved one".

Dr Tomlinson added: "As Anthony says he's been lucky to receive three transplants and like many other people with kidney disease he's coped well with the ups and downs. It's a pleasure to see him well again".

Sadly there are not enough kidneys for the number of patients on the transplant waiting list but it is encouraging to know that living kidney donation is increasing. If there's one message I would like to give from sharing my experience it’s this; If you know someone on the transplant waiting list or would consider becoming a living donor I would encourage you to contact the Organ Donor Line on 0845 60 60 400 and talk it through with one of their advisers or visit the website http://www.uktransplant.org.uk. There is a lot of support available for anyone wanting to become a live donor, and there is no doubt that donating a kidney is one of the most selfless acts a person can do for another person.

I am truly indebted to Julie and I would like to thank her wholeheartedly for her what she has given me, Jo and our children".