Incredible kidney transplant on Surgeons: At the Edge of Life

The latest in the amazing series Surgeons: At the Edge of Life airs this evening, and features a very special kidney transplant.

Isaac is two years old and his kidneys were damaged in the womb. In order to avoid long-term dialysis, Isaac needs a kidney transplant. Little Isaac’s dad, Lee, is a match and so he puts himself forward to donate a kidney. He says that Isaac is: “half of me”, and that this gives him a chance to increase the quality and length of his son’s life.

The father and son undergo surgery on the same day, as Lee’s kidney is removed at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham, and is taken across the city to the theatre at Birmingham Children’s Hospital, ready for the transplant.

Isaac’s damaged kidneys do not get removed, but instead the donor kidney will be connected in a new position, lower down in his abdomen. Surgeons Liam McCarthy and Khalid Sharif have to fit this adult kidney safely into the body of a two-year old, before the donor organ begins to degrade. If they succeed they will increase Isaac’s life expectancy by decades.

QEHB Charity is proud to support the incredible work of transplant surgeons at QEHB, and has funded equipment that can increase the number of liver and kidney transplants that are carried out at the hospital. Find out more here.