Holly Shaw • Advocates • LLTGL

Holly was a perfectly healthy teenager when suddenly, just after Christmas in 2004, she was taken ill and rushed into hospital. Various blood tests and injections took place and eventually a scan of her kidneys showed they had shrunk and were no longer doing the job they were supposed to. At this point, a shocked 17-year-old Holly was told she had End Stage Renal Failure (ESRF) and needed to go on dialysis immediately, which she would remain on for the foreseeable future until a suitable donor kidney was found for a transplant.

From then on, Holly required dialysis three times a week for three hours at a time and waited patiently for that phone call saying the transplant is going to take place. As well as dialysis, Holly has a strict fluid restriction of 500mls per day, a special diet and takes various tablets each day. The dialysis itself is restrictive, time-consuming and has unpleasant side-effects including low energy levels, tiring easily and almost constant nausea. Holly’s mum went through the tests to see if she could become a donor for her but she wasn't suitable.

The actual haemodialysis itself takes its toll, involving two needles inserted into a fistula which is a surgically enlarged vein located in Holly’s upper arm. This provides access to the bloodstream for haemodialysis. The fistula buzzes all the time which means the blood is flowing through it freely. Haemodialysis left Holly feeling wiped out and very often light headed however Holly was very aware that it was the only thing that could keep her alive until she got a transplant.

Holly’s optimism shines through in her attitude to her health and to her work. She insists it's not all doom and gloom, saying she has met so many great people because of her situation. Holly tried to not let dialysis get in the way of everyday life, and attended university when her health allowed her to; Holly says it was sometimes a struggle fitting the work load in with hospital visits however the lecturers were sympathetic regarding her attendance. Whilst Holly wouldn’t describe her social life as that of a normal student, she has some great understanding friends who are very supportive.

Holly is now 22 and in October 2008 she received the call she had been waiting over three years for; a suitable kidney had been found and the transplant took place that evening.

Holly says that life since her transplant is barely recognisable; she has her health back is enjoying the freedom from dialysis and the fact she can do normal everyday things that other people take for granted. Holly can now socialise with friends, and eat and drink what she wants. Since her transplant, Holly has been places she’d never been, experienced things she’d never experienced before and met people that she would never have otherwise met. She says “My family have got the old Holly back; I will be eternally grateful to the donor and their family for giving me this chance at a new life.”

Holly is determined to use my new found freedom to promote the plight of others on the waiting list by encouraging more people to become organ donors. In October 2008, Holly became one of the campaigners in Channel Four’s initiative Battlefront - a project aimed at getting young people actively involved in campaigning about a cause in which they believe. Her campaign The Gift of Life has received much media attention and even praise from the PM himself.

Holly organised a National Donor Day on 7th April 2009 to encourage as many people as possible to think about organ donation. Her hard work and dedicated focus resulted in 3500 people joining the Organ Donor Register that day, 15 times the average daily signup rate.

Holly is proud to be the North West advocate for LLTGL and wants to the most of her precious Gift of Life and continue raising awareness to help others as much as she possibly can.

Holly says “Signing the Organ Donor Register is free, it takes two minutes, and it could save someone's life. My life was changed because someone made that decision. I hope others will do the same and give hope to over 7000 people who are currently waiting for a transplant, 1000 of whom will die this year because of the shortage of Organ Donors in the UK.”