'My son saved my life through a kidney transplant - it's been life-saving and life-changing'

On April 29, 2016, Lewis Smith saved the life of his dad, David, by donating one of his kidneys.

For David and Lewis, their ‘kidneyversary’ is forever a day etched in their memories and one they always unite for.

As they hit their first decade they will celebrate in style with a family trip to Valencia in Spain.

Retired accountant, David, 66, said: “I can’t thank Lewis enough. He was absolutely brilliant and a rock.

"He was so determined and unwavering once he put his hand up.

“Every year we get together on our ‘kidneyversary’ to celebrate our kidneys and we never forget his gift of life.

"The transplant has been life-saving and life-changing.”

For David, who spent 20 years managing his auto-immune condition before his kidneys started to fail, a transplant was his only hope for regaining quality of life.

David, from Clifton, near Brighouse, said: “I’d successfully managed my condition for two decades but things started going downhill and in 2013 I was placed on the transplant list as my kidney function started to decline.

“From the start of my care at St Luke’s Hospital in Bradford, my renal consultants, Dr Robin Jeffrey (pre-transplant) and then Dr John Stoves (post-transplant), had been very clear that a living donor transplant was my best chance of longevity.”

Rather than face having his dad living life on dialysis and the organ donor transplant list, son Lewis stepped forward in 2015 and offered to be tested to see if he could donate one of his kidneys to his father. Much to David’s hesitancy initially.

He added: “Your natural instinct as a parent is to keep your child out of harm’s way. It was something that was difficult to get my head round initially and I was reluctant to accept that I was putting my son – albeit voluntarily – under the knife for my benefit.”

Lewis, now 34, said: “I’d become more aware that Dad was becoming sicker – I’ve only recently learnt he’d been placed on the transplant waiting list around 2013 - so I talked to Mum first about me volunteering to give Dad a kidney to get her onboard with the idea.

“I thought the best strategy was to write Dad a letter as I suspected he might just say no straight away, without giving it proper consideration, if I suggested it in person?

"I laid out the arguments pragmatically and rationally as to why it was a good idea, showing him I’d done my research.

"I got a text back to say we’d talk about it at a forthcoming cricket match.

“Well, we went to the match and watched it in silence. Neither of us could bring it up. We were meeting friends for tea and we said to them: ‘Can you just give us 30 minutes?’ So we talked and agreed we would proceed to assess the feasibility.”

They contacted the live kidney donor team at St Luke’s Hospital in October 2015 and were put in touch with co-ordinator, Michael Speight.

A series of medical, physical and psychological tests, ensued to check compatibility of tissue and blood to see if the pair were a match.

Lewis continued: “We thought it would be a long process but in January 2016, we got the call from Michael to say we were compatible - we were a match - and that the operation was scheduled for April 29.

"I never doubted my decision.

“All the conversations we had with medical professionals left me feeling like I was in safe hands.”

At the regional renal kidney transplant centre at St James’ Hospital in Leeds, a healthy kidney was taken from living donor Lewis first and transplanted into recipient David.

The pair recuperated on separate wards but Lewis was able to visit his father after their procedures. Lewis was discharged first and then David followed him home a few days after.

Father and son both credit the support from Debra and daughter and sister Juliette for their recovery. Juliette also took time out from university to share in the care. It can take the recipient up to a year to fully recover.

David, who has since retired from running his own business, is monitored every three months by Dr Russell Roberts at St Luke’s Hospital’s renal unit.

He’s taken up a new sport – padel tennis which he plays two to three times a week, sometimes against younger opponents and he and wife, Debra enjoy travelling and walking.

The pair are now spreading the word about how important organ donation is.

Both had joined the organ donation register before the family was touched by transplantation as they considered it the ‘right thing to do’.

Lewis said: “You can’t compare Dad from before the transplant to what he’s like now.

"Dad was very tired all the time and it felt like there was a shadow that loomed over him, but post-transplant he has so much more energy and a new drive to travel, to go out and see the world.”

David concluded: “The outcome of a transplant for me and the wider family has been immense.

"I am fit and healthy and am able to help cut trees around my 93-year-old mother’s house.

"I’m not chained to a dialysis machine and the positive benefit it has had on the wider family can’t be underestimated.

“Please consider becoming a living donor as they really do change lives for the better.”