KOCHI: The tales they told didn’t leave a single eye dry. The saga of endurance, kindness and sacrifice, which transcended boundaries of religion, caste and creed, had everyone looking at two sets of people— donors and transplantees — with awe at the reunion organised by Lisie Hospital on Tuesday.
Each two sets had two donors and two transplantees. The heroes of the first story were Ribish, wife Shijitha, and Muhammed Ashraf and wife Selina. Ribish of Ollur, Thrissur, had been suffering from renal failure for two years. He had registered himself with the Kidney Foundation for a B+ donor. According to him, his wife was ready to give him her kidney. “But her blood group is A+ and hence not a match for me,” he said.
It was at this juncture that Shijitha agreed to donate her kidney. Meanwhile, Muhammed Ashraf, of Kutippuram, Malappuram, had been waiting for a kidney transplant for four years. He needed an A+ donor. “After Shijitha gave a written consent to donate her kidney, we received a call from the Kidney Foundation. They gave us Selina’s number and asked us to contact her,” said Ribish.
Selina, Ashraf’s wife, was ready to donate her kidney to her husband. But being B+, she was not a match. This came in as a blessing for Ribish. The four met up at Lisie Hopsital and expressed their readiness to donate their kidneys. Various tests conducted showed that Shijitha and Selina donor matched Ashraf and Ribish respectively.
After getting approval from the Organ Transplantation Committee, the hospital proceeded with the surgery. Today, both couples are living a happy and healthy life. Similar stories moved everyone present at the event and helped realise the power of humanity.