Donating a kidney changed my life
I’m proud I chose to help a complete stranger
A Bannockburn woman has spoken about her decision to donate a kidney.
Marsha Eastwood made the choice to donate an organ to someone she didn’t know who was waiting on the transplant list – an act known as altruistic kidney donation – in November 2016.
Since her donation, the 66-yearold has become an active member of Give a Kidney Scotland – a group dedicated to raising awareness of the process and its impact on the transplant programme.
She said: “As soon as I heard about the possibility of altruistic donation, I knew that it was for me.
“It just felt like the right thing to do and I worked at getting myself as physically fit and healthy as I could so that the donation could go ahead.
“I never had any doubts, worries or concerns throughout the whole process as I trusted the surgeons and believed in a higher power.
“My recovery was really straightforward, and just four weeks after the surgery, I felt my energy levels return to normal.”
Marsha’s interest in becoming a living kidney donor was first sparked by a TV programme, with the administration worker deciding it was something she would investigate once she had retired.
Following retirement some 10 years later, Marsha made contact with the living donor transplant coordinator at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh in 2014 to start the process.
Although everything was fine medically, Marsha was told her BMI was too high for her to be considered.
For the next six months, Marsha focused on getting herself into the best shape, going to the gym six days a week resulting in a three stone weight loss – and a complete change in lifestyle.
Marsha doesn’t know who her recipient is, and understands she may never find out, but she was told the transplant was a success and that the individual was very grateful.
She said: “It’s still with me every day, and I feel like I have a connection to someone I don’t know and might never meet.
“It’s the thing I’ve done in my life that I’m most proud of.
“I know in my heart I’ve helped someone else have a better life and even if I never find out who that is, that is enough for me.
“It’s also changed my life, which is something I’ll be forever grateful for.
“I’ve lost weight, am more active and feel ten years younger than I did before the surgery.
“If I could do it again tomorrow I wouldn’t hesitate. I’m on the NHS Organ Donor Register so that someday perhaps I can help someone again.”
One in five people in Scotland (20 per cent) would be likely to consider donating a kidney in their lifetime to help someone they didn’t know, according to new research released this week,
The research, undertaken as part of a drive to highlight the importance of living kidney donation, revealed that over half of those surveyed (56 per cent) would be likely to consider living kidney donation for a friend, with 83 per cent agreeing they would be likely to do it for a family member.
To find out more about the process, visit livingdonationscotland.org