A quadruple amputee who became the first Scot to receive a double hand transplant has said she is “absolutely indebted” to a donor for the second time in her life after receiving a new kidney.
Cor Hutton was given a 5% chance of survival when she developed a life-threatening bout of sepsis in 2013, stemming from an everyday cough.
The 54-year-old mother from Renfrewshire survived the illness, but doctors were forced to amputate both hands and her legs below the knee.
Since recovering, Ms Hutton has set up and run the award-winning Finding Your Feet amputee charity and has completed a number of fundraising challenges, including becoming the first female quadruple amputee to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, and earlier this year trekking to Machu Picchu in Peru.
She said since the illness she always knew her kidney function “may be an issue”, and about a year ago she learned it was falling towards 11% – the cut-off for dialysis or a transplant.
“I hovered around 11% for a while, not feeling great but getting on with my work and life,” she said.
“I even trekked the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu in Peru – probably not the best idea in hindsight. It fluctuated but kept going back down to 11.”
Worried that having to undergo dialysis would limit her ability to care for her son and support her charity, she went on to the transplant list.
She continued: “My brother was a match and we were told that the surgery would take place in January 2025.
“Then I hit 10% and was boosted up the list because it became vital that I had a transplant. The team found a match and here we are.”
She received a call notifying her of the match on the morning of Friday December 13, and was in Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) in Glasgow that afternoon undergoing preparatory tests.
After 30 hours of harvesting and checks, the kidney arrived at QUEH on the Saturday at 8pm, where it was checked for a final time.
The transplant surgery took place the same evening, and Ms Hutton was back on the ward by 2am the following day.
Speaking after the transplant, Ms Hutton described organ donation as an “ultimate act of kindness”.
Speak to your family and let them know your intentions so that they aren’t faced with making the call on their own
She said: “This is the second time in my life I’m absolutely indebted to a donor.
“The first was my hand transplants, and I had the pleasure of meeting the donor’s family privately to say thank-you and show them how this ultimate act of kindness changed my life.
“I’m so aware that for me to get back to normal function that a family had to lose a loved one.
“My time of optimism is deeply sad for them, and I’ll never forget that. I’ll write them a letter soon to tell them exactly how much their brave decision means to me and my family.”
She added she is “pleased” at the introduction of the opt-out system for organ donation in Scotland, but urged people to speak to their families about their intentions.
“Families still make the final decision and I can only imagine how tough that is when dealing with the death of a loved one,” she said.
The story of Cor Hutton's kidney... Our Founder has been working as hard as ever this year, though this vital organ was operating at around 15%. Sepsis, which caused her to lose her arms and legs over ten years ago, had damaged it back then... [1/5] pic.twitter.com/PqLCokSdE5
— Finding Your Feet Amputee Charity (@FYF_charity) December 18, 2024
“All I will say is that lives can be changed and saved. I’m proof of that.
“Speak to your family and let them know your intentions so that they aren’t faced with making the call on their own.”
Asked about how she felt about her brother being a potential donor, she said initially she had not wanted to ask anyone for a kidney, but that “he didn’t think twice”.
She continued: “He immediately got involved and did everything they asked of him to prove he was fit to give me his organ. What a Christmas present.
“It’s so touching to know that you’re valued that much, but I know I’d never hear the end of it if he had to.”
Further information about the charity Finding Your Feet can be found at: https://findingyourfeet.net/.
