Simon donates life-saving kidney to his wife

Simon and Nicola after the operation

A SHAW woman and her husband are recovering after he donated one of his kidneys to save her life.

The vital operation took place more than a year after Simon King (35) set up a Facebook page to find a new kidney for Nicola (33). Simon initially wanted to donate one of his own but was told he wasn’t a match. A 14-month campaign failed to find a suitable donor.

But a new method of organ transplantation has now allowed Simon to give Nicola a kidney

Simon said: “It was almost exactly 500 days ago we started this group and it’s been a heck of a journey.”

Nicola has battled kidney disease since the birth of their second child in 2004. Last year she was told she needed a transplant. She almost died twice and was undergoing eight hours of dialysis a day.

Despite a record 54 prospective donors coming forward after the story appeared in the Oldham Chronicle, none was a match.

Then earlier this year the couple heard of a new method to remove blood antibodies - meaning they don’t attack and damage the new kidney. This meant Simon could be a donot at last.

The method is practised by Professor Robert Higgins in Coventry. Simon said: “We had a ‘ray of light’ moment when we found Professor Higgins and his work with mismatched donors.”

The transplant took place on June 20. Simon said: “Nicola is doing great. The new kidney appears to be functioning great. I’m also doing well. I’ve been able to walk to Nicola’s room and spend some time with her. It was great to see her face.

“So many of you have been amazing helping us on the way, far too many to list. We cannot thank you enough.”

twitter: @AlexCareyOC