Daughter Donates Kidney to Mom

28 September

After three years on dialysis at Tygerberg Hospital a 54-year-old mother received a gift that would change her life.

Margaret Roman was diagnosed with end-stage kidney disease, but her daughter Whitney Roman has donated a kidney to her mother.

The donation also coincided with Whitney’s birthday, Tuesday 23 August, making this transplant extra special.

The news of having end-stage kidney disease and being placed on dialysis was a big shock to Margaret and her family.

She initially struggled with her dialysis, but with time it became easier and a part of her daily routine. Margaret did not want Whitney to donate a kidney until she had a child.

In 2014, a month before Whitney was to donate her kidney, she found out that she was pregnant. This was bittersweet news to Margaret as she was anxiously anticipating her kidney transplant, but at the same time overjoyed to be a grandmother.

When Whitney received the recent call that the transplant was to take place on her birthday, all she could do was smile. She could not wait for her birthday to arrive so that she could give her mom the gift that she was waiting on for so long.

Margaret says that she never put any pressure on Whitney to donate and wanted her to decide on her own. The only word that she could use to describe how she felt when she heard the news was “excited!”

The kidney transplant went well without any complications and Whitney was able to visit her mom three days after the operation since her kidney was removed using “keyhole” surgery.

Provincial minister of health, Dr Nomafrench Mbombo, says they find many patients struggling with chronic kidney disease (CKD) or those who require intervention to save their lives.

“This month is kidney awareness month and everyone – including you and I – should listen to our bodies and live a healthy lifestyle. These stories like the one of Margaret is becoming more frequent and if you knew the symptoms of kidney failure you would not end up requiring a life-saving intervention from members of your family, or a stranger,” she says.

Mbombo says kidney donations can come from two sources.

The first is a donation from a family member such as parents, siblings, spouses and even uncles and cousins, or a living, unrelated, anonymous donor.

This type of donation has become the most common type as in the case of Margaret and her daughter, Whitney.

The other type of organ donation follows the death of a loved one who is declared brain dead following a tragic accident. As the list of people waiting for an organ donation grows, many die before receiving the ‘gift of life’.

“It is therefore of the utmost importance that potential donors contact their nearest transplant facility such as Tygerberg Hospital or Groote Schuur Hospital to get more information on how to go about giving someone this precious gift,” Mbombo says.

Chronic kidney disease has very few symptoms and you may only become aware of it when it is too late.

People who are particularly at risk of developing CKD include those with diabetes mellitus (sugar), hypertension (high blood pressure) and HIV infection.

“With this being kidney awareness month, make sure your kidneys are healthy by checking your blood pressure and having your urine tested for protein using a dipstick. These tests can be done by your family doctor or nearest clinic,” she says.

Mbombo adds the public should make sure they take care of their kidneys by living an active lifestyle, stop smoking, use their diabetic and high blood pressure medication as prescribed and try to eat healthy foods on a daily basis.

“By you taking care of your kidneys, they will take care of you,” she urges.

Source: Netwerk24