Donating A Kidney

Tessa: As a Paediatric Doctor, knowing a child was part of the chain means so much to me

Paediatric Emergency Doctor and mother of three, Tessa, donated her kidney to a stranger last winter. She admits that despite having sedated many patients, she was apprehensive about the operation but recovered well and ‘doesn’t feel any different living with just one kidney’. More than 10 years ago, I listened to podcast called ‘Strangers’, which […]


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Rachel: Donating at Christmas was a great time to be looked after!

Before teacher Rachel gave her spare kidney to someone she didn’t know, she already knew rather more than she wanted about the process. Her introduction came through a friend who worked on the dialysis ward in a Nottingham hospital and through whom she had learnt how unpleasant that is. But then, out of the blue, […]


Claire: I cannot save the world but donating a kidney can make a big difference

Claire Ramsden from Kirkham, Lancashire gifted one of her healthy kidneys to a stranger in 2013. “As a Platelet Donor, and previous to that a Blood Donor, the idea of donating was not unusual for me, however it was fairly recently that I found out about living kidney donation through the media. Until then I […]


James: the paired donation scheme is so important

James Holdstock donated a kidney early in 2013 as part of a Paired Donation Scheme. Here is his story: Schmauzer and I were introduced in March – I was in Guy’s Hospital, having just donated my left kidney and Schmauzer was a gift from my wife and mother-in-law. I am part of a ‘Paired Donation […]


Luc: six months after donating, I was in the best shape of my life

Luc donated a kidney in the summer of 2011, when he was 25. I’m what is known as an altruistic kidney donor – that’s someone who donates a kidney to save or prolong a stranger’s life. I’ve been asked to say a few words about my experience. Before I get into the joys of morphine […]


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Nicholas: it was an easy decision to make

Nicholas Crace is a former charity director from Hampshire, gave a kidney to a stranger in spring, 2012. He was, at the time, the oldest person in the UK to have done so at aged 83 – although there have now been older donors. Nicholas Crace had good health and no dependents when his wife, […]


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Jenny: The experience has changed my outlook on life

Jenny, a crime scene investigator from Dorset, gave a kidney to a stranger in 2011. I had never had any connection with anyone with  kidney failure or anything to do with organ transplants. I happened to see a  news article about a three-way paired kidney donation, and the article  mentioned altruistic kidney donation. At this […]


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David: I felt better than I had in a number of years

David, from Devon, a retired civil servant and lay magistrate, donated a kidney in 2010 at the age of 67.   Probably the most frequent question I have been  asked has been, “Why?” For me, this was fairly simple and straightforward; I  believe that if you are in a position to help someone else less […]


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Di: I would not hesitate to do it again

Di is from West Berkshire and an altruistic kidney donor who has written a blog about donating her kidney. In 2010 I donated a kidney to someone I did not know. A friend of mine in the United States donated one early in 2006, and that was the first I heard that you could. Immediately […]


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Chris: pity I can’t do it again!

Dr Chris Burns-Cox, a consultant physician from Gloucestershire, donated a kidney in 2010 at the age of 72. I had been a doctor for 50 years and still felt a pity for the suffering of mankind – but also was aware how enormously fortunate I had been in my own good health. These were  good […]


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