A Kilkenny man is recovering in hospital in Dublin just one week after receiving a life-altering kidney transplant - just in time for Organ Donor Awareness Week.
John Lacey (62 ) of Riverview in Loughboy got the unexpected phone call Monday week ago while he was in bed on kidney dialysis.
Having spent over a year and a half on dialysis he had always been hopeful that a positive donor would come up but he never expected that it would be so quickly.
“I am on the list for a transfer for just about 12 months now. My kidneys completely failed about a year and a half ago for no particular reason and ever since I have been on nine hours of kidney dialysis a day. I have a machine at home so I have been able to have my dialysis by night.”
Mr Lacey’s transplant took place on Tuesday March 23, at 12 noon. Following the phone call from the transplant team on Monday evening, Mr Lacey was immediately put into a taxi and driven straight to Dublin to Beaumont Hospital and he was admitted by midnight. Early the following morning he had tests on his blood to ensure that his body was compatible with the donor kidney and thankfully they discovered it was.
“It was amazing really. One day I was at home having dialysis in bed as usual and not even 24 hours later I had a new kidney and no need for dialysis. I was back in the ward in the hospital by 4pm with my new kidney, and I am up and about since. It is brilliant. I am due home some day this week but they are keeping me in for at least another day I think. I am feeling great though”
Mr Lacey, who works in Dunnes Stores car park, is under strict orders however to take it easy for the next three to four months and he is looking forward to a full recovery and to getting his old life back on track. He is married with two grown up children and he says that this transplant will be a load off the minds of his wife Mary B and their daughters.
“I’m delighted of course as it will change my life. But I’m also delighted that my wife and children won’t be so worried about me anymore. It is a great relief to have it all over now. My wife works in the health board here in Kilkenny and the girls are both living in Maynooth. I was due to carry out the collection for the ‘forget-me-knot’ emblems for Donor Awareness Week this week at Dunnes Stores but now one of the girls is going to do it for me instead.”
What Mr Lacey is most looking forward to over the coming months is getting a full night’s sleep and being able to be more active again.
“I have not had a full night’s unbroken sleep for over 18 months as I have been on dialysis every night for nine hours. I am looking forward to a decent sleep! I haven’t been able to go out after nine either for ages so this transplant will really change my life.”
Organ Donor Awareness Week which is organised by the Irish Kidney Association and supported by the Irish Donor Network is taking place until April 3.
The annual life saving awareness campaign aims to highlight the plight of people with organ failure and the ongoing need for organ donation for transplantation, encouraging more people to make an informed decision to carry an organ donor card and to donate their organs in the event of their untimely death.
There are currently more than 600 people in Ireland awaiting life-saving transplant operations. In Ireland last year there were 154 deceased donor kidney transplants, Eighteen extra kidney transplants were conducted via living donors making an overall total of 172 kidney transplants in Ireland in 2009, significantly higher than 2006, 2007, and 2008. The number of deceased donors in 2009 was 90.
For the fourth year in a row, popular TV and radio broadcaster Ryan Tubridy will lend his support to the campaign by featuring in radio advertising as well as on a poster.
Throughout the week, Irish Kidney Association volunteers have been out on the streets selling forget me not flower emblems (the symbol of transplantation ), brooches, magnetic car ribbons, and organ donor keyrings and newly introduced packs of forget-me-not flower seeds. Proceeds will go to the Irish Kidney Association’s support programme for patients on dialysis and those patients fortunate enough to have a kidney transplant. The support programme includes the running of a renal support centre in Beaumont Hospital and holiday centres in Kerry and Tramore, as well as patient aid and counselling services, patient training and rehabilitative work placement, health promotion, and the provision of kidney patient information and education.
Organ donor cards can also be obtained by phoning the Irish Kidney Association LoCall 1890 543639 or Freetext the word DONOR to 50050. Visit website www.ika.ie
