Cheryl Simoens will be getting a late Christmas gift from her brother Michael, but the fact that it’s a kidney should make up the for the delay.
Simoens, 32, was born with cystinosis, a chronic, genetic kidney disease that left her needing a kidney by age 11. Her father stepped in to donate one of his that lasted for nearly 20 years.
But at 30 her kidneys started to fail again and she was in need of another donor. For the past six months she’s been on dialysis but her older brother Michael is expected to donate one of his kidneys on Thursday.
“I feel incredibly grateful to have family members who are willing to donate an organ so selflessly,” Cheryl said in a news release. ” It is an indescribable feeling to be given the chance to get your life back and I am overwhelmed with joy to be able to live life to the fullest once again.”
After the surgery Simoens plans to continue rock climbing and training for a half marathon on top of getting back to working full-time and going back to school.
The average wait time for kidney donors in Manitoba is anywhere from five and a half to seven years.
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