A new drive by NHS Lanarkshire is asking people to consider donating a kidney, as they highlight that living donors offer the best outcome for those in need of a transplant.
There are currently over 400 people waiting for a kidney donation in Scotland and on that list in 2019 was Shelly Townsley's sister Pamela, who she donated a kidney to after her sister was forced onto dialysis to keep her alive.
The sisters, from Coltness, are now gearing up to celebrate their third Christmas since their operations and Shelly credits the operation for giving her sister her life back.
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Shelley told Lanarkshire Live : “Pamela is doing really well.
"She has only been in hospital a couple of times since the transplant and it was only for a short time.
“Previously she had been on dialysis three times per week and it totally drained her, she had no energy whatsoever.
“It feels like I’ve got my sister back, it’s enabled her to have a life again.
“She looks after my son Conor when I’m at work so that keeps her on her toes. He’s at the terrible twos stage just now so she’s definitely paying me back!”
There are two routes to living kidney donation – directed donation where a friend, relative or partner donates to a loved one, or non-directed altruistic donation which involves a person donating to a stranger.
Over the last 60 years, 1,500 people in Scotland have helped others by donating a kidney, with over 100 people making the decision to donate one of their kidneys altruistically since 2009.
New research released shows that four out of five people (80 per cent) in Scotland would be likely to consider donating a kidney to a family member whilst alive, with almost half (48 per cent) stating they’d be likely to consider donating to a friend.
A further 13 per cent said they’d consider donating to someone they didn’t know.
The health board's medical director, Dr Jane Burns, told us: “Through raising awareness that living kidney donation is an option, the hope is that more patients living with kidney failure can avoid or reduce the time they have to spend on dialysis and have a better quality of life.
“A healthy person can lead a completely normal life with one kidney, and anyone can volunteer to find out more about donating, but it must be something they choose to do and feel comfortable doing.”
Lead nurse at Living Donation Scotland, Jen Lumsdaine, called a living donation "an exceptional gift", which plays a vital part in improving transplant numbers, so more lives can be saved and transformed.
For more information about living kidney donations, visit here.
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