BENGALURU : A 26-year-old woman Sorbojaya Sithi Deb from Bangladesh called off her engagement in order to donate one of her kidneys to her mother. Despite opposition from her fiance, she decided to donate a kidney to Shika Rani, who was suffering from End Stage Kidney Disease. "I cannot even think of living a life without my mother. It took me a year to convince her," said Deb, who underwent the procedure with her mother at Manipal Hospital, Old Airport Road.
“My mother even decided to get me engaged as she thought she was going to die. But after she agreed, we told the family of the boy who I was getting engaged to, about the decision. But they were against it. So I decided to cancel my engagement, as nothing is more important to me than my mother,” she added.
Dr Sanakran Sundar, nephrologist, was in a dilemma due to the young age. After she underwent multiple counselling sessions, Deb’s decision to be the donor was accepted. Dr Sundar said, “This is a rare case as it is uncommon for women to be the recipient, while they outnumber men when it comes to donating organs. Normally, we discourage unmarried young women to donate organs as this may hamper their future, depending on their health conditions. I congratulate the parents for their daughter’s brave gesture.”
Trouble began for Rani in 2015 when she was operated upon for gal bladder stones in Bangladesh, where she was diagnosed with Chronic Kidney Disease. She was then taken to various hospitals where she was told that she needed a kidney transplant. However, lack of funds and donors turned out to be a challenge.
In 2018, Deb, who is the youngest daughter of the couple, decided to donate her kidney. The mother and the daughter have completely recovered now and will soon head back to Bangladesh.