A mother from Rochdale is appealing to the public to consider becoming a living kidney donor as she faces an increasingly desperate wait for a life-saving transplant.
Claire Boland, 39, has lived with end-stage kidney failure for five years and receives dialysis four times a week. She also has type 1 diabetes, and a rare combination of medical factors means her chances of receiving a suitable transplant are extremely limited.
Claire, who lives in the borough with her husband and two daughters aged 12 and two, has been on the national transplant list for half a decade. In that time, she has not received a single call offering a potential match.
Doctors have told her that because she has blood type O-positive and 100 per cent antibodies, only two in every 10,000 people would be a match.
“Without dialysis I wouldn’t be here,” Claire told Roch Valley Radio. “But dialysis takes five hours a session, four days a week. It’s exhausting, and it limits everything we can do as a family. We can’t plan holidays or days out the way other families can.”
Despite several family members being tested, none have been found to be a suitable match.
Claire’s condition also affects her two young daughters, who are growing up seeing their mum in and out of hospital. “It breaks my heart,” she said. “We try to stay positive, but we’re missing out on the memories that matter. I just want to be here for them.”
Now, Claire is appealing for members of the public to consider coming forward as potential living kidney donors. She hopes someone, even a complete stranger, may be a match and be willing to help.
“Becoming a living donor isn’t something people always think about,” she said. “But it could save my life. It could give my children their mum back.”
Living donation is one of several options available in the UK and is supported and managed by NHS Blood and Transplant. Donors undergo rigorous health checks and receive full aftercare. While it is a major decision, many donors report long-term health and emotional benefits from helping to save someone else’s life.
Anyone interested in becoming a donor or learning more about living kidney donation can visit the NHS website at https://www.organdonation.nhs.uk
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