Durban man with kidney disease urges KZN to know their blood type
Something as little as knowing your blood type could help save a life. Craig Woods, who suffers from a kidney disease, took the time to share his personal, emotional story with Damon.
Listen as Craig Woods shares his story with Damon in the podcast, then read more below:
In 2012, he was diagnosed with IgA Nephritis, which is a form of kidney disease, and although he's been able to lead a pretty 'normal' life since then, he was recently told by his doctor that he'll need to go onto dialysis within the next month. Craig is in desperate need of a kidney transplant within the next few months.
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None of his family are a match to Craig, and his family, like so many other people in our country, are looking for that one person to come forward and donate a kidney in order to save his life.
When you meet Craig, the first thing you'll notice is his positive outlook on life and it's hard to imagine that this is the same guy that needs a kidney. He and his wife Catherine are also expecting a child in January 2018.
People who suffer from kidney diseases normally lose function in both kidneys, but we only require one fully-functional kidney to live, and healthy donors can donate one of theirs to save someone else's life. If you wanted to be a donor, the first thing to do would be to see what blood group you are - and if you were wanting to specifically give Craig a kidney - you'd need to be O-blood type (either positive or negative).
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His story is an emotional and touching one. I would love to be the one to provide a life-saving kidney to Craig, but I am unfortunately an A-negative blood type. I wonder how many East Coasters know what blood type they are? Do you?
If you want to become an organ donor, there are a few things you need to do:
- You need to go to a blood testing Lab in KZN and find out what blood type you are.
- You then have to do a full physical exam and if you pass this, the final two tests would be to see if it’s a compatible match via tissue typing and cross-matching - this would be done in conjunction with doctors and the transplant clinic.
Even if you'd like to donate to someone else besides Craig and would like to find out more on how to save someone's life, there is a large amount of information on the Organ Donor Foundation website where you can register to become an organ donor and learn more about organ donation in the province.
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If you are interested in becoming a kidney donor for Craig, please contact them via the Facebook page set up for him or email [email protected].