Newtownstewart man marks ten years since transplant

A GRATEFUL Newtownstewart man whose life was transformed by a kidney transplant ten years ago is to celebrate the momentous milestone by embarking on a challenging 800km hike in Spain next year.

When he was a child, Graham McCormick was diagnosed with Alport syndrome, a genetic condition which is characterised by kidney disease, hearing loss and eye abnormalities.

People with Alport syndrome experience progressive loss of kidney function and, in some cases, this means that a transplant is an inevitability.

This condition runs in Graham’s family. In all, five members have been diagnosed with Alport syndrome, including brother Nigel, who has had two failed kidney transplants.

As a result, it is likely that Nigel will have permanent dialysis on a regular basis for the rest of his life.

At around 30 years of age, Graham’s blood results started showing signs that he would also require a transplant.

DIALYSIS

He was on dialysis for around three years when his wife Marissa decided she would get tested to see if she could donate a kidney to him.

Graham said, “It appeared she could be a match, but not a great match.

“We were advised that if we went into a pooled system we could end up with a better match, so we agreed to proceed with this.”

Under the UK Living Kidney Sharing Scheme, Marissa was able to donate her kidney to another recipient pair.

This initiative enables donor-recipient pairs who are incompatible and cannot donate directly to one another to register into a national scheme and receive a compatible transplant with another pair.

When two pairs are involved, it is called a ‘paired’ donation and this means one of the couples donates an organ to the other partner.

Graham said that his transplant a decade ago had been a massive success and the new kidney had changed his life.

DREAM

He described the days after the operation as “like a dream”.

“I just felt amazing. I was in pain but the energy I felt easily outweighed any discomfort. The colour was back in my face, my appetite was unreal and I couldn’t wait to get out and live my life again,” Graham said.

The day after his discharge, he met Radio Ulster’s Hugo Duncan at the motorway café in Dungannon.

“My father has known Hugo for a long time and he came over to talk to us. Hugo couldn’t believe I had just been discharged that morning with a transplant and was walking and full of life,” Graham said.

He is now a keen hiker and sportsman who loves to walk for miles in the rolling countryside surrounding his home in Newtownstewart. Graham is also a medallist at the British Transplant Games and played for the Transplant Northern Ireland football team.

Graham told the Chronicle, “My recovery went extremely well. I developed a new love for foods and drinks that I never really liked before, like eggs, salmon, chicken, white wine and whiskey.

“Apparently, this is very common for transplant recipients to start liking foods they previously did not.

“When my wife and I both recovered, we took up hill walking to help get our fitness back, climbing the hills and mountains that surround our home.

“We decided to give something back to a charity by participating in a day hike of Ben Nevis for Kidney Research UK. We raised over £4,000 in sponsorship and took on the daunting task on my birthday.”

BOSS

“Since then, my wife and I adopted a little three-year-old girl called Jamie Lei who is now the ten-year-old boss of the house (with her cat Shadow). Life has treated us all very well and I will forever be thankful to Marissa for giving up one of her kidneys for my benefit, but also to the couple who donated the kidney I have now transplanted inside of me and worked so well.

“I have taken part at the British Transplant Games 2017 and played for the Transplant Sport NI Football team.

“I have done many mountain treks in Ireland as well as taking up running five years ago.”

Graham said that, in the past year, he had completed the Mourne Way Trail Marathon and a few ultra-marathons. He trains in the gym regularly and loves spending time with family.

To celebrate the ten-year anniversary of his kidney transplant, Graham will attempt his biggest hike yet – the 800km-long Camino de Santiago across northern Spain.

“As a hiking enthusiast, I am planning to undertake the 800km Camino de Santiago pilgrimage trail in May next year, subject to practicalities, and will continue to take every chance this kidney has given me at a new life.”

If you would like to become a registered organ donor you can do so on the website, www.organdonation.nhs.uk.