Latest news with #WorldTransplantGames
BBC News
4 days ago
- Sport
- BBC News
Competing in World Transplant Games after surviving lymphoma
At the age of 25, Jo Kelly's world came crashing down when she was given just months to live after being diagnosed with Hodgkin undergoing years of chemotherapy, her terminal diagnosis made her determined to marry the love of her life Pete before she then a matching stem cell donor was found in Germany which would give her a chance to stay alive and cancer-free."You're literally starting from scratch. The best way I can describe it is, you're pushed to the point of near death, and then you're brought back again," she said. Thirteen years later, Ms Kelly, from Solihull, West Midlands, has two children and is preparing to compete in the World Transplant Games in August as a track cyclist for Great Britain. In 2012, Ms Kelly was waiting in hospital for her transplant from a stranger. At the same time, London was bustling with athletes arriving for the Olympics. The data engineer entertained herself by watching the event on TV and became "obsessed" with the "strength, stamina and grace" of Olympic track cycling."I swore that if I got out of everything alive, that I would take up the sport and give it a go."After recovering from her transplant, she started cycling and went on to win the women's road race twice at the British Transplant Games. In 2020, BBC Breakfast brought together Ms Kelly and her stem cell donor Stefan Berens for the first pair will be reunited this summer in Dresden, Germany as Mr Berens attends the World Transplant Games, which Ms Kelly said was "such a privilege". "Stefan is very special to me, I'll be forever thankful that he was my one and only match," she 39-year-old has been training for past year in the gym and on the bike, fitting it around her full-time job and caring for her family. "I'm definitely nervous, there are some really incredible cyclists competing. I'm really giving it my all to go for gold," she said. The data engineer said that taking part in the World Transplant Games was an "amazing opportunity" to spread awareness of the need for life-saving transplants. She encouraged people to share their organ donation wishes with their families and join the stem cell register to help save lives. Charity Anthony Nolan said people between the age of 16 and 30 could join the register to provide voluntary has helped more than 20,000 people receive a lifesaving transplant since it was established in 1974. Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Hospital opens 'one stop shop' transplant centre
A new "one-stop shop" transplant centre has opened at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham. The Edmonds Transplant Centre enables patients to receive all of their care, both prior to and after their operation, in one place, rather than attending appointments in multiple locations across the hospital. Clinical care consultant Nick Murphy said the new £4.2m facility would streamline patient journeys and reduce stress and recovery times. Imran Vorajee, 44, from Nuneaton, received a life-saving heart transplant at the hospital in 2018 and was among others who welcomed HRH Duchess of Gloucester to the centre during its official opening on Thursday. Mr Vorajee was diagnosed with end-stage heart failure at 37 years old and spent three months in a coma at the QEHB while he waited for a transplant. He said he "owed everything to the heart donor who saved his life". The new centre, which was funded by the University Hospitals Birmingham Charity, provides patients with pre-transplant consultations, additional fitness classes prior to surgery, support groups and rehabilitation classes after surgery. "Patients can come in and see their physician, the surgeon, the transplant coordinators, their psychologist and their dietician all on the same day and in one location," Mr Murphy said. QEHB is one of the leading transplant centres in Europe for heart, liver, lung and kidney surgeries. Mike Hammond from the charity added that the new facility would help the hospital increase the number of transplants it carried out and complete research to make transplants "more successful and last longer". Ben Jeszka received a liver transplant at the QEHB and said he felt "the best he ever had". "I'm swimming, running, going on holidays again, and getting back into work; it's done so much for me," Mr Jeszka said. Seven years after he received his transplant, Mr Vorajee said he was looking forward to playing table tennis at the World Transplant Games. He added that "with his new heart", he no longer took things for granted. "I feel that it hasn't changed me as a person, but I'm making the most of my new life now thanks to my donor," he said. Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. Permits considered for streets near hospital Job cuts planned as NHS trust looks to save £130m Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Hospital opens 'one stop shop' transplant centre
A new "one-stop shop" transplant centre has opened at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham. The Edmonds Transplant Centre enables patients to receive all of their care, both prior to and after their operation, in one place, rather than attending appointments in multiple locations across the hospital. Clinical care consultant Nick Murphy said the new £4.2m facility would streamline patient journeys and reduce stress and recovery times. Imran Vorajee, 44, from Nuneaton, received a life-saving heart transplant at the hospital in 2018 and was among others who welcomed HRH Duchess of Gloucester to the centre during its official opening on Thursday. Mr Vorajee was diagnosed with end-stage heart failure at 37 years old and spent three months in a coma at the QEHB while he waited for a transplant. He said he "owed everything to the heart donor who saved his life". The new centre, which was funded by the University Hospitals Birmingham Charity, provides patients with pre-transplant consultations, additional fitness classes prior to surgery, support groups and rehabilitation classes after surgery. "Patients can come in and see their physician, the surgeon, the transplant coordinators, their psychologist and their dietician all on the same day and in one location," Mr Murphy said. QEHB is one of the leading transplant centres in Europe for heart, liver, lung and kidney surgeries. Mike Hammond from the charity added that the new facility would help the hospital increase the number of transplants it carried out and complete research to make transplants "more successful and last longer". Ben Jeszka received a liver transplant at the QEHB and said he felt "the best he ever had". "I'm swimming, running, going on holidays again, and getting back into work; it's done so much for me," Mr Jeszka said. Seven years after he received his transplant, Mr Vorajee said he was looking forward to playing table tennis at the World Transplant Games. He added that "with his new heart", he no longer took things for granted. "I feel that it hasn't changed me as a person, but I'm making the most of my new life now thanks to my donor," he said. Follow BBC Birmingham on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. Permits considered for streets near hospital Job cuts planned as NHS trust looks to save £130m Queen Elizabeth Hospital Birmingham
Irish Independent
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Meet the Cork-based air exec brought to death's door at the age of 34 by kidney failure
Robbie Merrigan is back living life at full throttle, preparing to contest the World Transplant Games in golf later this year and getting in the practice rounds at Fermoy Today at 00:00 'I've lived a few lives' Robbie Merrigan tells me as we meet on the putting green at Fermoy Golf Club. The farmer's son is a man of many talents to say the least – a jet dealer, helicopter expert, air show organiser, event-winning caddie, but also a transplant recipient and intensive care survivor.
The Courier
09-05-2025
- Health
- The Courier
'A stem cell transplant saved my life - now I'm a gold medal winning athlete'
William Black had just returned home from a snowboarding holiday when he had a second bout of glandular fever. But he had a feeling something was wrong because this time his symptoms were a lot worse. At the time the 38-year-old, who lives in Auchterarder, was just 22. And he was completely unaware that he had a rare and potentially life-threatening condition. 'I felt really unwell, very lethargic,' he says. 'I had sickness as well which I hadn't had with glandular fever before. 'So I went to see my GP who referred me to hospital straight away.' The IT architect, who then lived in Dunfermline, was admitted to Queen Margaret Hospital and initially medics weren't sure what was wrong. But when William's condition rapidly deteriorated after developing pneumonia, he was moved into intensive care. After tests were carried out, William was diagnosed with Hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) – a life-threatening disorder caused by an overactive immune system. And he ended up needing a life-saving stem cell transplant from a matching donor. Ever since the Auchterarder cyclist has been raising awareness for Anthony Nolan, having taken part in several British Transplant Games events. And this August he is gearing up once again – this time for his third World Transplant Games in Germany to give back to Anthony Nolan – the charity which saved his life. William had glandular fever for the second time and was admitted to hospital in February 2009. He recalls tests being done which includes a bone marrow aspiration. This is a medical procedure where a small amount of liquid bone marrow is taken. It's often done to assess the bone marrow's health and to diagnose blood disorders and cancers. 'I remember it was very painful,' he says. 'But from the bone marrow they were able to see the disease quite clearly. 'That's when I was diagnosed with this rare immune disorder called HLH. 'Yet because they hadn't seen a case of it before, they didn't have any documentation on it. 'So they gave me information they had found through research.' He continues: 'While I was shocked with the diagnosis, I also trusted my consultant. 'I felt I was in the best possible hands. 'I also knew without treatment the disease would kill me.' Initially William was given two rounds of chemotherapy with the aim of 'dampening down' the reaction of his immune system. 'My immune system had become over-stimulated and the disease started destroying healthy cells,' he explains. 'It can then start to attack your organs resulting in multiple organ failure.' Due to HLH being so rare, medics had to contact specialists at Great Ormond Street Hospital to get advice on treatment. 'I was told I would need a stem cell transplant. 'So they would be taking blood to try and find me a match. 'I was very nervous but I knew I didn't have any other choice.' In June 2009 William was given some good news. During an appointment with his consultant she told him a donor had been found through the stem cell donation charity, Anthony Nolan. 'In actual fact I had two matches – one was 20 years old and the other was 40. 'They went with the younger one as their immune system was younger. 'At that stage I was still finding it hard to believe I needed to go through a transplant. 'But I was really happy a match had been found.' In September 2009 William had the stem cell transplant at the Beatson Cancer Centre in Glasgow and was in hospital for five weeks afterwards. A stem cell transplant involves replacing damaged or diseased blood-forming stem cells with healthy ones. 'The transplant was a success but afterwards I just felt completely wiped out. 'It can take up to a year for the body to recover.' Over the next few months William started to build up his strength. Then after changing jobs, he bought a second hand bike and started cycling. It wasn't long before he was cycling five days a week. A few years later, in 2015, William came across an Anthony Nolan advert about the British Transplant Games in Newcastle. The British Transplant Games is an annual, four-day sporting event organised by Transplant Sport. It's a way of encouraging transplant recipients to regain their fitness after their transplant and to raise awareness of organ donation. William says: 'This was the first year Anthony Nolan was putting a team in. 'I entered the 18-29 age category in the cycling road race and ended up coming second, winning a silver medal.' Ever since he has gone on to take part in a few games events and has an impressive haul of medals to show for it. In August 2019 Auchterarder's William was selected to compete for the first time in the World Transplant Games which took place at Gateshead, Newcastle. The World Transplant Games takes place every two years and is organised by the World Transplant Games Federation. The event sees transplant recipients compete in various sports, demonstrating their health and fitness post-transplant and inspire others to consider organ donation. 'The competition was quite fierce. 'So I didn't win any medals in that one but it was an amazing experience.' The Auchterarder cyclist then went on to compete in his second World Transplant Games in April 2023 in Perth, Australia. And it was during this event he won his first gold medal. 'I didn't do very well in the cycling time trial in the road race. 'However, we did a team triathlon relay and I did the cycling leg of it. And our team ended up winning the gold medal.' This August (17-24th) William has been selected for his third World Transplant Games in Dresden, Germany. And he is looking forward to competing once again. 'I have been training hard for it,' he says. 'At the end of 2023 I hired a new coach because I was stagnating a little with my performance. 'Since then I have seen massive results so I am hoping to do well this year.' William is grateful for the support of his family through his health struggles particularly his mum. 'My mum was there through it all and when I was in hospital after the stem cell transplant – she visited every day. 'Having her support meant a lot.' The IT architect also has the backing of his partner Steph, 43. 'I met Steph in 2021 and she has joined the Anthony Nolan register and encourages other people to do so as well. 'She has been very supportive in sharing my story too.' William is passionate about raising awareness and encouraging people to sign up to the stem cell register. He has also previously been shortlisted for the Shirley Nolan Award which recognises individuals or groups who have gone above and beyond in their support of Anthony Nolan. He says: 'When I was 22 I had no idea what a stem cell transplant was. 'This is why I feel it is important to share my story. 'Chances are you could join the register and nothing happens.' He adds: 'But you might be that one person that someone needs – it could mean the difference between life or death.'
