Recently a nurse from Scotland took her calling to a whole new level when she gave one of her kidneys to a complete stranger who was in need of a transplant. It was an extraordinary gesture from 48-year-old Rachel Cox, a renal nurse who has spent 15 years caring for patients undergoing the grueling process of dialysis. She has witnessed some patients actually dying while they waited to receive a new kidney.
Cox’s empathy for those going through the debilitating treatment led her to make the decision to give one of her kidneys, even if it meant being left with a permanent scar and eight weeks out of work, with an anxious husband and two children. But she also knows first hand that being on dialysis means your life expectancy is dramatically reduced, and “dialysis is not for wimps.”
Most people needing a kidney transplant rely on family members, but sometimes there are people willing to make a sacrifice for someone they don’t even know. “People say an altruistic donor gets nothing from it. But I got an immense sense of satisfaction. I’ve done something to improve somebody else’s life,” Cox shared with the Daily Record.
Although Cox readily admits that although her generous act is not for everyone and she was scared of the pain, it’s something she has always wanted to do since she was a little girl.
“I hope the person has a better life because of my kidney. They did not ask for it but I had a spare to give.”
And for this devoted nurse, donating a kidney wasn’t enough. Although she’s long recovered from the surgery that took place in 2017, she’s now raising money for Kidney Research UK by running the London Marathon this coming April.
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