‘Donating a kidney to a stranger completely changed my life’ – 01/02/2024 – Equilíbrio

Every year a small number of people decide to donate a kidney to a stranger in the UK.

In 2022, around a thousand Britons donated a kidney to a family member or friend, while only 83 gave one of these organs, which are responsible for filtering blood, to someone they didn’t know.

Teacher Laura Maisey, 38, is one of these so-called altruistic donors.

Below, she explains why donating one of her kidneys represented a major life change.

‘I wanted to know if you want one of my kidneys’

I started thinking about how I could help others when I ran from Rome, Italy, to London, England, in September 2016. During that trip, which lasted 73 days, I received a lot of kindness from strangers and wanted to give it back.

Alice, a friend who is also a runner, told me she was going to donate a kidney to a stranger the following year. You can survive with just one of these organs, so she saw no reason not to donate the other. And that made perfect sense to me.

People kept saying it was crazy for me to do this, or that the procedure was too dangerous and that they would be too scared to do it.

I realized that some people’s minds don’t work like mine, so few people should be making altruistic donations — which made me more determined to help.

However, I needed to move to Italy for 18 months and I put the idea aside. Just before returning to the UK, the kidneys of a cousin of mine who has diabetes started to fail.

I couldn’t help her because she needed a kidney and pancreas from a deceased donor.

I knew I wanted to improve someone’s life — like my own cousin, who had a successful transplant. I wanted to thank the world for that.

After moving back to the UK, I had an appointment in London and was close to Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital, where my friend Alice had donated her kidney a long time ago.

I walked in and went straight to the nephrology department. There, he told the receptionist, “I wanted to know if you would like one of my kidneys.”

Three months and many tests later, I was approved to donate. I’m vegan, I hardly drink and I’m quite active, so I was sure that my little kidney could be of good service to someone else.

But Covid spread across the world and ruined my plans.

All elective surgeries have been cancelled. I waited until September 2020, contacted the hospital, and thankfully the kidney donation program started again.

‘I’ve never been so happy to hear that a stranger peed’

A few months later, I received a call that a compatible patient had been found. My operation would be in January.

I can honestly say that I was very excited.

I had only one doubt when I was told I would have to self-isolate with my partner on Christmas Day, to make sure I didn’t catch Covid.

My dad texted me the night before the surgery to say he was scared and didn’t want me to undergo the procedure.

But I was determined. It’s weird going to the hospital to have doctors intentionally make you sick — but I couldn’t wait for it.

The fateful morning arrived, and the surgeons came to my room to check if I was still open to donation. It was the most certain “yes” I’ve ever said in my life.

On the way to the operating room, I was very agitated. The kidney physically left my body at noon and began a journey to its new recipient.

They informed me the next morning that my kidney had been successfully transplanted, the recipient was urinating perfectly and all the rates that represent good kidney function were as they should be.

I’ve never been so happy to hear that a stranger peed!

I stayed in the hospital for three days, rested at home for another day and then returned to normal life.

I know some people have a longer recovery, but I felt good again quickly.

A month later, the hospital received an email from Stuart, the person who received my kidney. “Hi, I’m the guy who took your kidney,” the message said.

Before the surgery, I was instructed not to come into contact with the recipient. So I didn’t expect to hear any news, but I was really happy that he was okay.

We exchanged correspondence and got to know each other. I was fascinated to know everything about his life. My husband and I went to meet him in Folkestone, UK, where he lives with his wife. We went swimming in the sea and drinking champagne. We got along so well, it was really incredible.

I would have been happy if anyone received my kidney. But the icing on the cake was that the organization ended up with a very nice person — and now we are good friends.

In October I ran a marathon in York. Stuart, who received my kidney, came to support me and met my father, who now fully understands why I decided to donate.

This is, without a doubt, the best thing that has ever happened to me, and I can say my decision changed my life.

We rarely have the chance to make a real difference in someone’s life. At some point, I will no longer exist.

For me, it is important that you leave something good in the world.

Stuart, who received Laura’s kidney, reports:

I was 43 years old when I received Laura’s kidney. I knew I would need a transplant since I was 20 years old, when I was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease [doença que causa formação de cistos renais, com aumento gradual de ambos os rins, às vezes, com progressão para insuficiência renal]. She was seriously ill before the operation, about to require dialysis.

My kidney function is now very good — which is really amazing, because I’m a big man and Laura is very slight. So, her kidney needs to work a lot.

Laura had to drink a lot of water before the operation, so they gave me this kidney full of water. It’s crazy to think that I urinated some of what she drank!

I knew from the beginning that I needed to write to Laura, but I had trouble deciding what to say. What Laura did for me was the most incredible and beautiful thing. There are no words to summarize how grateful I am to her.

Laura is a great human being. She didn’t want me to thank her and said she was just giving back to the universe.

We have this lifelong bond now — and I’m lucky to have her as a friend.

It’s in Brazil?

The Ministry of Health points out that, from January to December 2023, Brazil registered 6,011 kidney transplants — the organ is the most demanded on the transplant list, with more than 38 thousand patients on the waiting list.

Brazilian legislation does not provide for altruistic donation. Generally, organs used in transplants come from deceased donors.

In the case of a kidney transplant, there is the possibility of donating while alive, as long as the removal of the organ does not represent a risk to the donor’s health.

But it is more common for this living donation to come from spouses or family members up to the fourth degree. When the donation involves someone outside the family, judicial authorization is required to carry out the procedure in Brazil.