To mark awareness of organ donation week (which begins on Monday, September 7) a Pembrokeshire couple have shared their amazing story after becoming the first live transplant at the Welsh capital’s hospital since lockdown ended.

As transplant centres begin to reopen, after most procedures were suspended due to Covid-19, the good fortune of one Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) sufferer Rob Thomas came in the form of his generous and brave wife Christine.

Rob a native of Manorbier who attended Tenby’s Greenhill School is recovering with Christine at the couple’s home in Haverfordwest, after undergoing surgery at the University Hospital of Wales on August 3, with his wife donating her kidney to him.

PKD is a genetic disease with no cure where kidneys grow to the size of rugby balls, with Rob being diagnosed in 2010 after a prolonged period of high blood pressure led his GP to request a scan.

There was no family history of PKD, so the last thing Rob expected was for the investigation to reveal that he had cysts on both kidneys.

“I was scared and upset. I’d never heard of PKD and when I looked for more information online, one of the first things I read is that I’d be dead within four years!” he remarked.

Although Rob’s GP put paid to this wholly inaccurate prognosis, as a dad to two young daughters - a baby and a three-year old - he was understandably fearful for the future.

The discovery triggered a chain of events for the whole family too. Rob’s two siblings, and his daughters have since tested positive for PKD, and it’s now believed that his dad, who passed away in 2003 due to a heart related condition, may have had PKD.

Nonetheless, determined to get on with life, Rob remained active and healthy for several years.

That was until the decline in his kidney function led to increasing tiredness, pain, infections, and finally, the need for a transplant.

Christine offered to donate straight away. And it was due to the strength of her decision that Rob found it easier to agree to it.

“Had she been hesitant or scared, accepting her gift would have been harder, if not impossible,” continued Rob.

The couple, married in 2019 had only been together for 12 months by the time they began donor screening. And in doing so Christine joined the growing number of people who donate a kidney while they are still alive to a relative, friend or someone they do not know. In fact, about a third of all kidney transplants carried out in the UK are from living donors.

Despite the long travel to the hospital in Cardiff, screening was pretty straightforward. At each stage, the couple learnt more and more about what to expect pre and post surgery.

“We’ve always been open to discussing the issues relating to PKD, and not bury our heads in the sand when faced with the hard facts. This has helped us a lot,” explained Christine, who thankfully was a very good match for Rob, and the surgery went ahead at The University Hospital Wales, Cardiff, which took great care to protect the couple from the dangers of Covid-19.

Unfortunately this meant Rob and Christine were unable to spend time together after their operations. They had to make do with sending each other FaceTime and WhatsApp messages, despite being in nearby wards!

Since then, there have been a few tears and sleepless nights, plus one readmission for Rob. But 4 weeks post transplant they are beginning to see progress, an easing of pain and a significant improvement to Rob’s kidney function!

Christine is taking three months leave from work, while Rob continues to shield and work from home.

The couple are also now starting to reflect on their shared experience, with the full reality of what they’ve both gained slowly sinking in. One thing they know already, is that it’s made their relationship stronger and feel it will continue to grow as they fully recover.

Rob who runs a pet therapy service, which - coincidently - helps people recover from physical or emotional ill-heath while in hospital, care setting, or at home, added: “I am to self isolate for a further three months due to now being immuno-suppressed, well until a vaccine is found in reality.

“My operation to transplant wasn’t straight forward as I had to have an emergency operation straight after to reposition the kidney as it was compressed, but the team at The University Hospital Wales in Cardiff were and are amazing!”

For anyone considering living organ donation, Rob and Christine offer this advice: “Let the professionals deal with the technicalities and have the utmost faith in the surgical teams, as they’re performing these operations daily. Be prepared to drink lots of fluid post transplant, expect the recovery period to be challenging, but know that progress will be made within a few weeks!”

To discover more about living organ donation, head to: https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk/become-a-living-donor/

September is also PKD Awareness Month and with around 70,000 people affected in the UK, you can find out more at: www.pkdcharity.org.uk