Latest news with #heartTransplant
BBC News
2 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Houghton heart donation recipient calls for change in rules
A woman who was the first baby to have a heart transplant in the UK says families should not be able to overturn a loved one's decision to donate their donations have almost tripled from 255 in 2020/21 to 680 in 2023/24, according to official figures, leading to an estimated 2,040 "missed opportunities" last Davidson-Olley, from Houghton-le-Spring, who had transplant surgery at Newcastle's Freeman Hospital in 1987, said lives were continuing to be Blood and Transplant (NHSBT) said families were "always involved" in donation and they might have "important information" which was vital in understanding whether organs were safe for donation. Last year, families refusing donation gave reasons including not knowing what the patient wanted, feeling the donation process took too long, not wanting any further surgery to the body, or it was against religious and cultural research carried out by Bangor University found some families did not understand the soft opt-out laws, introduced in England in 2020, where patients are presumed to have given consent for donation unless they specifically opted out of the organ donation register. "The knock-on impact is lives won't be saved, it's as simple as that. Organs need to be used here, not in heaven," Ms Davidson-Olley, now 38, said."The figures [for organ donations] are extremely low, and we need to boost that up and we need public help to do that."Ms Davidson-Olley praised the NHS, but said the sole decision to remain opted-in to the Organ Donation Register should be honoured, where appropriate. According to the NHS, for every one donor, an average of three organs can be transplanted, potentially saving additional lives."You're giving a life, you're giving a gift, look at me 38 years post-transplant - I love my life and I couldn't be thankful enough to what I've been given," Ms Davidson-Olley said."Have the conversation [with your family] and share your wishes." Figures from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 showed that 140 families overruled a patient's "opt-in decision". A further 540 families did not support "deemed consent", where there is no expressed decision and so the patient is assumed to support organ all those cases, no donation went ahead. Terry Archbold previously told the BBC he and his partner were split over organ donation after their daughter Isabel was his partner Cheryl agreed, Mr Archbold said he had initially refused organ donation as he had never given the subject consideration, and a "protective instinct kicked in" that "didn't want anyone to touch her".However, it was only after having a discussion he said he realised they would be "hopefully saving other parents from experiencing the same feelings we had". Families consulted A spokesperson for NHSBT said families were often aware of a patient's "medical, travel and social history" and which was "vital to understanding" whether their organs were "safe to transplant", or had more recent information than a decision recorded on the donor said while families were expected to support a patient's decision to donate, the circumstances in which a person died were "often very sudden and traumatic", and said it was encouraging people to be clear with family members about their wishes."Families are far more likely to support donation when they already know it was what their relative wanted," the spokesperson said."Almost 90% of people honoured their family members decision last year when they had either registered their decision to donate on the NHS Organ Donor Register or had spoken with their family about wanting to be an organ donor."The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said it was encouraging everybody to "register their decision" which "only takes two minutes and could save up to nine lives".A spokesperson added the DHSC was making it "as easy as possible" for those to record their preference on the register. Follow BBC Sunderland on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
BBC News
4 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
Derbyshire post-transplant runner 'wanted to do my donor proud'
"I wanted to do my donor proud by exercising with my heart transplant", says Karen 65 year-old transplantee, from Wirksworth in Derbyshire, completed her 50th parkrun on Saturday and said she wanted to show that you can still be active, even after receiving a life-saving Hodgson said doing the Park Run with 11 other transplantees was also a great way of urging people to "give the gift of life" through organ running 19 years after her transplant, Mrs Hodgson said: "We want to show how well and active we can be after receiving a life-saving transplant and to also show that despite a history of poor health, it is possible to get fit." Karen was 26 when she was diagnosed with cardiomyopathy, a disease of the heart said she didn't need a transplant at first after her in 2006, when she was 46, Mrs Hodgson received a new heart after being given just 18 days to live due to her health Hodgson said she was still alive due to the "gift of life" and wanted families to discuss whether they wished to have their organs donated."I'd like people to have the conversation about organ donation because it will save lives and it means families can enjoy each others company for longer", said Mrs of 30 April 2025, NHS Blood and Transplant said around 580 people in the East Midlands were on the waiting list for an organ transplant, including 131 people in 8,000 people in the UK were currently waiting for an organ transplant, NHS Blood and Transplant law surrounding organ donation in England was changed in May 2020 so people had to opt out rather than opt in to become adults in England are now considered to have agreed to be an organ donor when they die, unless they have recorded a decision not to donate or are in one of the excluded groups. Seven of Mrs Hodgson's group that participate in the Long Eaton parkrun have been selected to represent Team GB at this year's World Transplant Games in Dresden, Germany."I will be competing in the 5k road race and the 1500m and 800m track", said Mrs Hodgson."We are a mix of heart, lung, kidney, pancreas, bone marrow and liver transplantees all with amazing stories to tell. "We also have Charlotte running with us who is an altruistic kidney donor and also kidney donors who were able to save their loved ones lives with family donation."Mrs Hodgson said she was "grateful and humble" to represent her country in the upcoming games."I think about my donor and her family whenever I cross a finishing line", she said."I didn't know who she was but her gift has meant I can continue my life and I keep my heart strong to be able to continue running for as long as I can."
The Independent
24-05-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
NBA champ, 'Survivor' contestant Scot Pollard shares Indy 500 parade float with heart donor's family
Scot Pollard was standing in Gasoline Alley at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and trying not to cry. The NBA champion and 'Survivor' contestant was talking about meeting the family of Casey Angell, whose heart was now beating inside Pollard's chest. Angell's sister brought a stethoscope. 'She touched my chest. She listened and she started crying. She said, 'Hey, Bubba,' because that's what she used to call him,' Pollard said. 'And we all lost it. And I'm losing it right now.' A first-round draft pick who took Kansas to the NCAA Sweet 16 four years in a row and won it all with the 2008 Boston Celtics, Pollard was virtually bedridden by 2024, unable to walk around the block or even conduct an interview without needing a rest because of a virus that had weakened his heart. Since receiving the life-saving transplant last winter, he has dedicated himself to raising awareness of organ donation, a mission that earned him the honor of serving as the Grand Marshal for the Indy 500 Festival Parade on Saturday. Angell's family rode along on the float with him. 'Any time we get to see them and be around them is a great moment,' Pollard said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. 'But also just to be able to share this experience of being grand marshal with them, and be part of their lives.' At 6-foot-11 and a playing weight of 260 pounds, Pollard inherited his size from his father along with a genetic heart condition that doctors say was triggered by a virus that left him no other choice but a transplant. The problem would be finding a donor organ big enough to pump blood throughout his NBA center-sized body. Six hundred miles away, in East Texas, Angell was on life support with pneumonia brought on by a respiratory illness. 'We made the decision that we were letting go, and they came to us within about 30 minutes and asked about donation,' said Megan Tyra, who works as an administrator at the hospital where her brother died. 'We saw the heart leave, going out the door, and all we were told was that it was headed to Tennessee.' To protect everyone's privacy, organ recipients can only learn about their donors – and vice versa – through a system that requires both sides to agree. Pollard was told that most people don't hear back, but he wrote a note anyway. Angell's family responded. (In addition to his heart, Casey Angell's corneas and his kidneys were donated. The family was told the other recipients were two 17-year-olds and a 48- and a 49-year-old; they have not heard from any of the other recipients.) 'Casey was a nosy dude. He always wanted to be in the know,' Tyra said with a laugh. 'And so when we got that first letter from Scot, … we were grateful that Scot wanted to know about Casey. Him and (his wife) Dawn have been so sweet and kind, (saying) 'You're part of our family now.'' They set up a meeting in Texas this March. Tyra was there with her husband, Clint; Angell's wife, Pam; and her son William, who is now 13. Pollard brought his family — and cameras to record the event for a TV documentary. 'To say the least, it was a tad bit overwhelming,' Tyra said in a telephone interview this week from Indianapolis. 'We never did this for anything other than who Casey was, a helper, a guy who would help anyone do anything. So it's a little bit surreal, a little bit overwhelming. But (Scot) and Dawn make it easy.' Pollard, who turned 50 in February a few days after celebrating his one-year anniversary with the new heart, said that since receiving the transplant he has suffered from survivor's guilt — the doubt that he was worthy of such a gift: 'It's a challenge, because I've got to live right. There's a face, and I know what he looks like and I know who he was, and the family. And so there's that pressure.' Angell's family, he said, helped save him twice. 'There were a lot of days I was crying like, 'I don't know if I deserve this,'' Pollard said. 'And then when they responded, and I got to know them, and I learned a lot more about Casey, it definitely helped. He has helped a whole lot with the healing. Not just emotionally, obviously.' Pollard is hoping the documentary and the other media attention he brings as a former pro athlete will persuade people to consider organ donation. Last month, he spoke at the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation and received a standing ovation from a convention center full of doctors, including his own; that night, he attended a Celtics playoff game and got another big cheer when he received a shoutout on the scoreboard. Pollard, who spent two of his 11 NBA seasons with the Indiana Pacers and settled near Indianapolis, was booked for a breakfast with the governor as part of the Indy 500 festivities this weekend along with some other meet-and-greets. He will watch the race — known as the Greatest Spectacle in Racing — on Sunday in a suite with Angell's family. 'We're excited about the fact that we're honoring Casey, and who Casey was. So it's all about Casey, and the sacrifice Casey made,' Tyra said. 'We're grateful that Scot wanted us to meet, and wants us to be a part of this and that he's doing so much for organ donation. It's amazing. 'You know, we never thought our little smalltown selves would be here for the Indy 500," she said. 'But here we are.' ___
Associated Press
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Associated Press
NBA champ, 'Survivor' contestant Scot Pollard shares Indy 500 parade float with heart donor's family
Scot Pollard was standing in Gasoline Alley at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and trying not to cry. The NBA champion and 'Survivor' contestant was talking about meeting the family of Casey Angell, whose heart was now beating inside Pollard's chest. Angell's sister brought a stethoscope. 'She touched my chest. She listened and she started crying. She said, 'Hey, Bubba,' because that's what she used to call him,' Pollard said. 'And we all lost it. And I'm losing it right now.' A first-round draft pick who took Kansas to the NCAA Sweet 16 four years in a row and won it all with the 2008 Boston Celtics, Pollard was virtually bedridden by 2024, unable to walk around the block or even conduct an interview without needing a rest because of a virus that had weakened his heart. Since receiving the life-saving transplant last winter, he has dedicated himself to raising awareness of organ donation, a mission that earned him the honor of serving as the Grand Marshal for the Indy 500 Festival Parade on Saturday. Angell's family rode along on the float with him. 'Any time we get to see them and be around them is a great moment,' Pollard said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. 'But also just to be able to share this experience of being grand marshal with them, and be part of their lives.' At 6-foot-11 and a playing weight of 260 pounds, Pollard inherited his size from his father along with a genetic heart condition that doctors say was triggered by a virus that left him no other choice but a transplant. The problem would be finding a donor organ big enough to pump blood throughout his NBA center-sized body. Six hundred miles away, in East Texas, Angell was on life support with pneumonia brought on by a respiratory illness. 'We made the decision that we were letting go, and they came to us within about 30 minutes and asked about donation,' said Megan Tyra, who works as an administrator at the hospital where her brother died. 'We saw the heart leave, going out the door, and all we were told was that it was headed to Tennessee.' To protect everyone's privacy, organ recipients can only learn about their donors – and vice versa – through a system that requires both sides to agree. Pollard was told that most people don't hear back, but he wrote a note anyway. Angell's family responded. (In addition to his heart, Casey Angell's corneas and his kidneys were donated. The family was told the other recipients were two 17-year-olds and a 48- and a 49-year-old; they have not heard from any of the other recipients.) 'Casey was a nosy dude. He always wanted to be in the know,' Tyra said with a laugh. 'And so when we got that first letter from Scot, … we were grateful that Scot wanted to know about Casey. Him and (his wife) Dawn have been so sweet and kind, (saying) 'You're part of our family now.'' They set up a meeting in Texas this March. Tyra was there with her husband, Clint; Angell's wife, Pam; and her son William, who is now 13. Pollard brought his family — and cameras to record the event for a TV documentary. 'To say the least, it was a tad bit overwhelming,' Tyra said in a telephone interview this week from Indianapolis. 'We never did this for anything other than who Casey was, a helper, a guy who would help anyone do anything. So it's a little bit surreal, a little bit overwhelming. But (Scot) and Dawn make it easy.' Pollard, who turned 50 in February a few days after celebrating his one-year anniversary with the new heart, said that since receiving the transplant he has suffered from survivor's guilt — the doubt that he was worthy of such a gift: 'It's a challenge, because I've got to live right. There's a face, and I know what he looks like and I know who he was, and the family. And so there's that pressure.' Angell's family, he said, helped save him twice. 'There were a lot of days I was crying like, 'I don't know if I deserve this,'' Pollard said. 'And then when they responded, and I got to know them, and I learned a lot more about Casey, it definitely helped. He has helped a whole lot with the healing. Not just emotionally, obviously.' Pollard is hoping the documentary and the other media attention he brings as a former pro athlete will persuade people to consider organ donation. Last month, he spoke at the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation and received a standing ovation from a convention center full of doctors, including his own; that night, he attended a Celtics playoff game and got another big cheer when he received a shoutout on the scoreboard. Pollard, who spent two of his 11 NBA seasons with the Indiana Pacers and settled near Indianapolis, was booked for a breakfast with the governor as part of the Indy 500 festivities this weekend along with some other meet-and-greets. He will watch the race — known as the Greatest Spectacle in Racing — on Sunday in a suite with Angell's family. 'We're excited about the fact that we're honoring Casey, and who Casey was. So it's all about Casey, and the sacrifice Casey made,' Tyra said. 'We're grateful that Scot wanted us to meet, and wants us to be a part of this and that he's doing so much for organ donation. It's amazing. 'You know, we never thought our little smalltown selves would be here for the Indy 500,' she said. 'But here we are.' ___ AP auto racing:
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Heart Transplant Turns One Mother's Grief Into Another Child's Second Chance (Exclusive)
Lisa Schein's daughter, Maddy, tragically died in an ATV accident in 2022 Schein donated Maddy's heart to Mireya Moody, who was living with a rare heart condition, saving the 8-year-old's life The two families later connected and have since formed an unbreakable bondOne summer afternoon, in a quiet Ohio park, two families, forever connected by loss and hope, came together for the first time. Lisa Schein, 43, placed a stethoscope on Mireya Moody's chest and listened carefully to the heartbeat that once belonged to her own daughter, Maddy. Without pause, Mireya instinctively reached out to hug the grieving mother, forming a bond that words could never fully capture. 'I wanted to soothe her, so I did what I do best,' the 8-year-old tells PEOPLE exclusively. It was a gesture of love, healing, and shared strength – a moment neither of them would ever forget. On April 1, 2022, Schein made the difficult decision to donate her daughter's organs following Maddy's sudden death in an ATV accident. 'She was just a bubbly, fun, energetic 8-year-old,' Lisa tells PEOPLE exclusively. 'She was very witty… She loved to dance, loved to sing. She was always up for anything I suggested. If I went to the store for milk, she was by my side.' Despite the devastation of losing a child, Schein knew she wanted something good to come from it. 'It was almost an instant reaction,' she reveals. 'I knew that I didn't want her death to be in vain.' Maddy became an organ donor, saving four lives. One of those lives was Mireya's. At just 4, Mireya was diagnosed with left ventricular non-compaction cardiomyopathy (LVNC), a rare condition that severely weakened her heart. 'Her heart just could not sustain itself much longer,' Mireya's mother, Bianca Robinson, 40, tells PEOPLE exclusively. 'It was starting to affect her other organs… her lung had collapsed, and unfortunately, she had to be put on what's called a Berlin Heart.' The device gave Mireya a temporary lifeline as her condition grew more critical. When the call came that a donor heart was available, Robinson was hit with a wave of emotion. 'Of course I'm relieved – my child is going to have a second chance at life,' she reflects. 'But I also knew what that meant for this other family… I didn't know them at the time. I didn't know how old the child was… I just knew the likelihood that it was a child, and this other family is going to be living out the nightmare we didn't want to ever have to face.' Mireya's transplant was successful, and she slowly regained her strength through therapy sessions. While there were some minor setbacks and brief hospital stays, she began living the life of a normal child again. 'She's doing great,' Robinson shares. 'You know, in a situation like this, it's easy to prepare for the worst… But she's only had a few minor health issues. Nothing too serious.' About two years after the transplant, Robinson and Schein finally connected. Their first meeting, in August 2024, was deeply moving for both mothers. 'It was way more emotional than we thought it would be – and on both parts,' Schein says. 'It was just such a great feeling… knowing that [Maddy] was living on. The fact that Mireya wouldn't have made it without that, I think, helped heal my heart a little bit.' After spending the day together, the families discovered surprising similarities between Maddy and Mireya, such as their love for stuffed animals. Schein's family even gave Mireya an avocado plush toy, which she now sleeps with every night, and lovingly named after Maddy. What began as grief grew into a shared journey of healing. 'It was almost like I had already known her,' Robinson says of meeting Schein. 'It's a maternal thing. I felt so comfortable around her… both sides of our families were laughing and sharing stories as if we had known each other forever.' Committed to carrying on Maddy's legacy, Robinson and Mireya have participated in the annual 5K event held in her honor, which takes place in Logan, Ohio, every Thanksgiving. It was there that Mireya even got to meet some of Maddy's school friends. 'This coming year will be our third year doing it,' Schein says. 'It's just in her memory, and we try to do some fun things that remind everyone of her. All the proceeds go to benefit a scholarship held in Maddy's name through our local school district.' For both families, organ donation has become more than just a noble idea, but tangible way to make a difference in people's lives. 'I had never thought twice about organ donation,' Robinson says. 'It just simply was something that I would check 'yes' on when renewing my license… but once it became a part of my child's life, I knew how important it really is.' Schein echoed that sentiment with a heartfelt plea, saying she "really hopes people understand" how impactful organ donation can be. "It's not just a box you check on a form," she says. "You have to think about how you would feel if you were the one waiting for that organ or the one saying goodbye to your loved one. You just have to think of it from both sides.' Read the original article on People
