It is 50 years this month since Sharyn Wylie of Ashburton had a kidney transplanted from her father. Now during National Kidney Month, the 64-year-old is wanting to raise awareness of the value of organ donation. She spoke with Susan Sandys.
Sharyn Wylie’s kidney, that was transplanted 50 years ago, is still going strong.
On March 9 she reached the exceptional five-decade milestone. On average a kidney transplant from a living donor lasts up to 25 years.
Wylie is forever indebted to her dad Cyril Hay, who was the one who donated the organ. It was an act of parental love that saved her life.
‘‘It was amazing, it’s just an absolute gift, it’s given me 50 years of great health that I would not have had,’’ Wylie said.
‘‘I would not have even been around.’’
As a child, Wylie was on antibiotics for about four years after doctors thought she had rheumatic fever.
But what she had was kidney failure, the symptoms of which can be similar to rheumatic fever.
The disease was revealed in its full seriousness after she became suddenly ill at tap dancing competitions in Timaru when she was 13.
‘‘I was supposed to stay with friends down there, I didn’t want to because I had lost all my balance,’’ she said.
She also felt giddy, cold and shaky.
Once home her parents took her to the doctor; she soon quickly found herself in an ambulance on her way to Christchurch Hospital, where she went into a coma.
She had to go on dialysis to stay alive, three days a week for up to 10 hours a day.
‘‘I had my dialysis machine at home and my mum looked after me and machine, cleaning it and checking it when alarms went off.’’
Her mum and dad underwent testing to see if they were compatible as donors.
Cyril proved to be slightly more compatible than wife Betty.
When Wylie was 14 the transplant surgery went ahead, in what was the first parent to child kidney donation surgery for Christchurch.
A photo of the beaming father-daughter duo appeared on the front page of Star Sports & Magazine, under the heading ‘‘ALIVE! Thanks to her dad’s love’’.
Cyril said in the article he and wife Betty did not think twice about wanting to donate a kidney. No-one in the medical profession had asked them to consider the donation.
‘‘We wanted to do it,’’ he told the reporter. ‘‘And we would like any parent faced with the same situation to know that it is possible and that we are both fit and well after the operation.’’
Wylie went on to live a full life. She and husband Owen have an adult son, Daniel.
Today, she is a team leader at Croys Accountants.
She enjoys following harness racing, likes knitting, reading, walking, as well as spending time with friends and family.
Cyril died at the age of 89 in 2017.
‘‘He’s part of me still, even though he’s passed away, everything I have got is really because of him,’’ Wylie said.
Her transplanted kidney is 98-years-old.
‘‘That’s how old dad would have been, it’s doing remarkably well,’’ she said.
Wylie wants to raise awareness of the value of organ donation.
She is urging those who tick yes on their driver’s licence to organ donation, to also have a conversation with their family members.
This is because it often falls to those family members as to whether they will allow their dying loved ones’ organs to be donated.
Kidney Health New Zealand says at least one in 10 people have chronic kidney disease, and most have no idea until it’s too late to do anything about it. Early warning signs can include changes in urination, fatigue, swelling in legs/ ankles, high blood pressure, itchy/dry skin, unexplained nausea and shortness of breath. To look after your kidneys, experts advise keeping blood pressure and blood sugar under control, reducing salt and staying active. Kidney Health New Zealand has a friendly nurse team on 0800 (KIDNEY) 543 639.
