There are some truly special people who seek to donate a kidney to a stranger and there is a system in this country to allow them to do that. It's known as altruistic donation and after seeking medical advice and having the necessary tests a recipient is found by comparing who on the waiting list best matches that organ (there are various markers such as blood type, tissue type etc). The donor has no say in who their kidney goes to.
MatchingDonors is a website that allows renal patients to advertise their need for a kidney in the hope of finding a donor. They can post whatever they want from a photo, the details of why they need help or a back story of their family life.
After having my kidney transplant last year and knowing exactly what these patients are going through I felt it was important to go on record as saying that I fully support this website.
I appreciate the concerns that people have. You are basically auditioning to an unknown audience who get to decide whether to save your life or move onto the next page. However, I actually think this is a good thing, at least for the donor.
Something that comes up when you talk about donation, whether for right or wrong reasons, is the issue of who gets the organs. It could go to somebody you wouldn't approve of. An example that springs to mind is when George Best was given a new liver after destroying his own one through alcoholism. He continued to drink alcohol and ultimately died 3 years later. Whether he should or shouldn't have been given the liver is not for me to comment on but I can't help wondering who else on the waiting list was passed over so he could have another chance.
The website would remove the uncertainty over who will get the benefit of your gift. Obviously George's donor was dead but would the family of the deceased have been pleased to know their loved ones liver had been wasted? Being a live kidney donor is not something to be taken lightly and the prospect of it going to somebody who won't appreciate it has to be considered. I think it's perfectly acceptable to want to be sure that the recipient will treasure it, look after it and live their life to the full and that is exactly what the website will facilitate.
Of course not everybody has a tragic tale to tell. If I was uploading an audition I wouldn't be able to compete with the "please help me, I want to see my children grow up" or "I've had to put my doctorate on hold while I have treatment" but for every person that finds a kidney via the website, it's one less person on the waiting list meaning I'd have a better chance, however remote, of getting the call we all dream of from the hospital. Whatever your viewpoint, less people on the waiting list can only ever be a good thing.
I understand when people say that we don't have a right to play god or that we have no right to judge who is more deserving than others. But, the first British woman to sign up to the website is a mother of 3 young children who is in her situation through no fault of her own. Wouldn't you rather your organ helped her over somebody who destroyed their kidneys through drugs or alcohol? I'm absolutely not saying that people who fall in that category should receive no help, I'm only suggesting that if you got to choose then surely knowing you'd enabled a family to stay together would be your preferred option.
There is such a shortage of organs not just at home but on a global level and there is a black market for kidneys that will continue to thrive at the detriment of the poverty stricken donors until the amount of organs available drastically increases. There is huge potential for this website to entice people to join the donor list for when they die. If they read the stories behind the patients it might spur them into signing up. Being a living donor isn't something that is going to appeal to everyone and that is fair enough. Why would you put yourself through an unnecessary procedure for no benefit to yourself? But there is NO REASON AT ALL not to donate your organs when you die and if people become aware of how much they could change another persons life and sign up then it is hugely beneficial to everyone.
With regards to my own health I will need another kidney at some point in the future. The average transplant lasts around 10-15 years although there are cases of them lasting 20, 30 and even 40 years. The next time round I won't be able to get one from my mum and I'm an only child so I don't have any siblings I can guilt trip or bribe into helping me. Having the horrifying promise of more dialysis in my future terrifies me. We are so lucky in the UK because the average waiting time for a donor is only 2 years, in America it's 3-5 years and in South Africa it is 5 years.
I could write for hours and I'd still never be able to properly explain just how debilitating and terrible dialysis is. It's relentless. If this website allows people to escape this torture whether by finding a donor directly or removing people from the waiting list then it must be celebrated. I will admit that the fact you must pay to advertise your needs does repulse me slightly but after your first dialysis session you soon realise there isn't much you wouldn't do to free yourself from the machine so I'm sure many patients would see the fee as a necessary evil. I would love it if a payment-free version of the system was available though.
For the people who have been quick to slam the idea behind it, try and imagine your life on hold for several years whilst having invasive treatment 3 times a week. If you experienced it for a day you wouldn't be so quick to judge.
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