Kidney transplants last year saved all three of our lives
Mum, her son & nephew get new lease of life after organ donation
The quick succession of transplants leaves us full of hope and gratitude MARGARET FITZGERALD CORK YESTERDAY
A FAMILY said all their prayers were answered as a mother, her son and her nephew all received life-saving kidney transplants.
In just six months, Margaret Fitzgerald, 70, her 49-year-old son Michael Fitzgerald and Joe Cott had procedures.
The family all suffer from the hereditary condition polycystic kidney disease.
Margaret’s mother Elizabeth died aged just 46 from the condition, while it also took Joe’s father and Margaret’s brother Joseph last year.
Before he passed away, Joseph learned that his son Joe, from Ballyclough, Cork, would be receiving a kidney transplant from his younger son Michael.
He said: “I was very lucky that I didn’t have to go on the transplant waiting list and my younger brother Michael stepped up and he was the perfect match.” Just five months after that successful operation, Michael, from Carrigaline, Cork, received the call that he was matched with an organ donor.
He underwent the successful operation in Beaumont Hospital, Dublin, and remarkably, his mother received the same call just seven weeks later.
Margaret said: “The incredible quick succession of transplants our family has received this year leaves us full of hope and gratitude.
“Having two successful transplants for my nephew and son close together was so unexpected but I was in total disbelief when I also got called for a transplant just seven weeks after my son’s.
“I had resigned myself to having to wait for a few years and was just happy their transplants were a success.” She had below 10% kidney function and was about to start dialysis when she received the life-changing call offering her a transplant.
Margaret added: “Although I had not been well and felt exhausted for a long time, I had no idea just how much difference a transplant would make.
“Immediately my energy soared and it still amazes me how simple things in life are so much easier now, like having boundless energy to go shopping or spending time with my grandchildren.
“I could not believe it when I got called and when I woke up after my transplant operation it almost felt magical a total transformation. It is life-changing.”
Michael said he “cannot put into words” the gratitude he has for the family of the donor. He had been on dialysis for 21 months before his transplant and now can live a life free from sickness.
The family shared their stories as part of Organ Donor Awareness Week 2024, which is organised by the Irish Kidney Association.
Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said he hopes to bring The Human Tissue Act into fruition this year, which will implement an “opt-out” system for donation.
However, the charity stressed conversations among family members on donation must still be had, as even when this is implemented relatives of the deceased will still be asked for consent for organ retrieval.