In a heartwarming tale surrounding Mumbai’s first liver swap, two families from different parts of the world were brought together to help out each other, and two lives were saved to spread hope across borders.
The liver swap was much more than a replacement of organs as 33-year-old Meena Ranawade from a village near Pune gave a portion of her liver to 33-year-old newscaster Deepti Gadhvi from Nairobi suffering from liver cancer. To make it even more beautiful a tale, Deepti’s husband Mohammed Noorani donated a portion of his liver to Meena’s husband Balu, who was diagnosed with liver failure, as reported by The Times Of India.
The swap where the healthy family members of patients who need an organ, donate a portion of their organ to each other’s relatives, took place previously in Delhi in 2009, but is the first to be carried out in Mumbai, DNA reported.
Both Deepti and Balu were unable to find a donor in their own family, as Deepti’s blood group did not match with her husband’s, and Meena was looking for someone to donate a portion of a liver to her husband Balu.
Deepti said, “The first thing I asked the doctor after the surgery is if this means I am cancer-free and he said yes. I guess there is hope for everyone.”
While such exchanges have been common for kidneys, doctors said that liver swaps are not so common since, “You need four operation theatres and 10 surgeons and eight anaesthetists to carry out these operations simultaneously.”
Meanwhile, such a swap not only keeps the spirit of helping each other alive, it also seems to be bringing people closer irrespective geographic and religious distinctions.
Feature image source: AFP