Daniel Broadhead is the first living donor to donate part of his liver to a stranger. His story appears in the DAILY MIRROR newspaper over two pages…
Daniel Broadhead and his mum Karen came to Featureworld to tell the story of how at the age of 20 Daniel had donated part of his liver, saving the life of a 4-year-old boy.
Karen was horrified when Daniel told her of his intentions. The operation to donate a part of your liver is not without risks and naturally as any mum, Daniel’s welfare was upper most in her mind.
In fact, she was so upset she and Daniel’s dad begged him not to go through with the op. She imagined Daniel dying on the operating table.
However, Daniel, who has carried a donor card since the age of 16, was determined. Although there are health risks, he felt they were rare and the thought he could save someone’s life encouraged him to go ahead.
The op, which took place at St James’s Hospital in Leeds, took six hours and afterwards Daniel did suffer a bleeding complication. This meant he was in the high dependency unit for three days and in hospital for a week.
Karen told me it was very hard seeing Daniel in pain and to see the long scar on his chest and stomach left by the surgery.
He will also undergo health checks for the next six months and take blood thinning pills for the next few weeks to ensure he doesn’t suffer side-effects such as blood clots. Live liver donation is possible because the liver regenerates itself and so eventually it will be back to its full-sized self.
However, he has no regrets. The little boy he donated part of his liver to has now gone home – undoubtedly Daniel has saved his life. And mum Karen is of course incredibly proud of her son.
It was vitally important for Daniel and Karen that the feature they did was balanced. The Daily Mirror article highlighted both the risks and good sides of becoming a living donor. It also gave advice to anyone else thinking of following in Daniel’s footsteps.
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