WOMAN’S DOG CHOOSES STRANGER WHO IS PERFECT KIDNEY MATCH
Lucy Humphrey’s Doberman kept bothering a stranger on a beach in Wales, which was a little embarrassing for her owners. But when Lucy and her partner went over to apologize, the encounter ended up saving Lucy’s life. The stranger happened to be on the kidney donation register, and against astronomical odds, she was a perfect kidney match for the transplant Lucy desperately needed.
For more than 15 years, Lucy lived with lupus, a condition that can cause inflammation in the heart, lungs, liver, kidneys and joints. Her kidneys eventually failed. By 2019, doctors told her she might have only five years to live without a kidney transplant.
Lucy was placed on dialysis, which meant strict limits on what she could eat and drink. The treatment also put her plans on hold. She and her partner, Cenydd Owen, had bought a campervan to take their two Dobermans, Jake and Indie, on weekend trips from their home in Caerphilly.
In June 2021, the couple planned a two-day break to Aberystwyth. Lucy was too unwell for the long journey, so they decided to visit Cold Knap beach in Barry instead. They parked their campervan overlooking the water and set up a barbecue.
As they cooked, Indie kept wandering about 100 yards away to approach a woman who was sitting by herself and crocheting. Cenydd kept calling the large dog back, worried she might be intimidating the stranger. Finally, the couple walked over to apologize.
The woman was Katie James, a 40-year-old from Barry, and she did not mind the dog at all. Lucy noticed Katie seemed to be having a difficult time, so she invited her to join their barbecue.
Katie came over and offered Lucy a drink. Cenydd explained that Lucy could not drink because she was on dialysis and waiting for a kidney.
“Oh I’ve just gone on the kidney donation register!” Katie said, according to BBC News.
When Cenydd asked who she planned to donate to, Katie told him she would give her kidney to “anyone who wants it.”
The women exchanged phone numbers. The very next day, they contacted a donor coordinator to begin testing.
The Kidney Gang
The results were unbelievable. Lucy said Katie’s tests showed she was a perfect match. “A surgeon told us it’s a one in 22 million chance to find the perfect match, and that’s what I needed as I’ve got Lupus,” Lucy said.
The transplant was postponed repeatedly while Covid was ongoing. During the wait, Katie stayed in close contact. She created a WhatsApp group called “The Kidney Gang” to keep the couple updated.
“All her visits to the hospital she was updating us and sending recorded messages and pictures,” Cenydd told BBC News. “I’ve still got all the recordings and how excited she was that she was doing something good. It’s just mad a total stranger and Lucy’s got her life back.”
The surgery finally took place on October 3, 2022, at University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff.
Katie said the process was smooth on her end. “We went in together on the Sunday, and on the Monday morning they took us down, took my kidney out, popped it into Lucy and Bob’s your uncle,” she said.
Katie felt incredibly proud of the decision. She told reporters there was no negative side to the donation, though she sometimes got embarrassed when her grandmother bragged about it to strangers.
After the transplant, Lucy faced some complications in the initial weeks. However, the surgery was ultimately a success. She was finally able to eat and drink what she liked, and she and Cenydd began returning to their normal lives.
The three of them continued to meet up regularly after the surgery. Cenydd called Katie a wonderful and selfless person, but noted she had one condition for their ongoing friendship.
“She doesn’t like my jokes, and said if I don’t stop telling her jokes, she wants her kidney back,” Cenydd said. “She never signed up for my jokes.”
Lucy said she remained grateful that her dog insisted on saying hello to a stranger. She noted that dialysis does not work forever and she could only have so many access lines put in.
“I really needed this transplant, I’d been on the waiting list for several years,” Lucy said. “It’s completely changed my life already.”
