SUCCESSFUL TRANSPLANT. Virginia Bueno and his son Guilliver Bueno (at the back) share on Wednesday (Sept. 25, 2019) their experience of how organ transplantation has changed their lives after 21 years. The Department of Health 11 (Davao region) held a ceremony as part of Organ Donation Month to remember and thank all organ donors. (PNA photo by Che Palicte)
DAVAO CITY -- The Department of Health recognized the contribution of organ donors in a ceremony held here Wednesday.
The ceremony, attended by some 50 recipients together with their donors or family members, was part of the commemoration of Organ Donation Month to remember and thank all organ donors in the country, said Dr. Ma. Theresa Bad-ang, nephrologist and head of the Southern Philippines Medical Center - Human Advocate and Retrieval Effort (SPMC-SHARE).
Bad-ang said it was the first time in the country that recognition was given to the “heroes” who bravely shared their organs to their loved ones to spare them from life-threatening circumstances.
She said the number of attendees could have been higher as others were not able to attend due to their work schedules.
“We gave due importance to these heroes because of their efforts for adding life to their recipients,” Bad-ang said.
She said the recognition, to be held annually, also seeks to raise public awareness "that there’s no harm in donating one’s organ."
Bad-ang reiterated that organ donation remains the best solution to address the increasing number of renal disease in the country.
She emphasized the need to encourage donations from terminal patients who are already brain-dead.
“You can’t bring your organs to heaven. Might as well leave (them) to those people who need (them) here,” she said.
Bad-ang also urged the public to support a pending measure before the City Council that seeks to promote brain-dead organ donation in the city.
“There are a lot of patients getting into dialysis. If we will support this advocacy, we will be able to help a lot of patients with chronic kidney disease,” she said.
A son’s love
Virginia Bueno, a kidney recipient for 21 years, narrated her struggle right before having a kidney transplant.
In September 1998, she was diagnosed with end-stage renal failure and was advised to undergo dialysis treatment. She said that the process was no longer helpful for her as it only caused her to frequently vomit and lose appetite.
“I really felt that it (was) the end of the world and I thought that I wouldn’t make it,” Bueno said.
While on dialysis treatment for two months, his son Guilliver volunteered to donate his kidney.
“I (was) desperate to save my mom and my wife supported me all throughout the process,” he said.
After various tests, Virginia became a recipient of Guilliver’s kidney on Nov. 12, 1998.
Guilliver recalled that he felt no side effects, assuring potential donors that the procedure is safe.
“If you will just follow the doctor’s advice, especially on how to take care of your body after transplantation, you will not have anything to worry about,” he said.
In fact, he said he even managed to produce three more kids and has lived a normal and healthy life after the transplant.
“Do not believe when they say that you will no longer live a normal life if you donate your organ. Look at me, I am happy that I was able to extend my mother’s life and live normally with my wife and my four kids,” he said. (PNA)
