A LOVE LIKE NO OTHER
THREE FAMILIES EXPLAIN WHY THE BOND THEY SHARE AS MOTHER AND DAUGHTER IS EVERLASTING
‘I DONATED A KIDNEY TO MY DAUGHTER’
When Laura Di Scala noticed that her daughter’s eyes were puffy, she thought it was an allergic reaction. But the following day when she lifted up Aleia, then 3, Laura noticed the tot was much heavier than usual.
A urine test and hospital examinations quickly diagnosed Nephrotic syndrome – Aleia’s kidneys weren’t functioning properly.
“She went to hospital and didn’t come out for several months,” says Laura, 37, from Melbourne. Aleia gained as much as half a kilo of fluid a day and eventually had a seizure. Then, her kidneys collapsed and Aleia began hours of dialysis. “We tried to make things fun, but she was confined to bed for hours. We tried to reassure her that it wouldn’t be like this forever. It was very hard to see her go through that,” says Laura. In 2016, a kidney transplant was discussed and Laura was a match.
“It was the easiest decision ever,” says Laura. “Throughout everything, Aleia was bubbly and boisterous, and she loved dancing and singing. She was singing the day of the transplant because she was so excited.”
Aleia faced further challenges when the condition returned and impacted the kidney donated by her mum.
She still needed treatment until last year, when a new technique finally freed her from dialysis. She currently takes medication, but today she’s like any other funloving 12-year-old.
“It makes me feel really special that Mum gave her kidney to make me feel better. I have two older brothers and they missed out on time with Mum because she was always with me. I always knew she was close by,” says Aleia.
“We joke that we can read each other’s minds because of our shared kidneys!”