INSIDE AN ORGAN SWAP

The Australian Paired Kidney Exchange Programme (AKX) was created by the national Organ and Tissue Authority “to increase the options for living kidney donation,” reads a Donatelife statement. In 2015, the AKX oversaw 154 paired-donation kidney transplants— 19 per cent of all live-donor kidney transplants in Australia. While donating his kidney to a stranger to save his granddaughter’s life was a “no-brainer,” Rod Westwood has had to be mindful of his lifestyle: “Staying a healthy weight, not overindulging, exercising,” he says.