Kochi,Kerala: In a rare incident, a nun saved the life of another nun, who also happens to be her biological sister, by donating her kidney. The patient was suffering from kidney failure since March and kidney transplantation was her only option, doctors said.
The kidney was donated by Sr. Dona Rose (49), a member of the Congregation of the Mother of Carmel’s Holy Queen’s province, Changanacherry, to Sr. Anitha Jose, (56), a member of Carmel Sadan, Thellakom in Kottayam.
The kidney was harvested and transplanted to Sr. Anitha Jose by a medical team of VPS Lakeshore, Kochi on May 12. On her decision to donate her kidney, Sr. Dona Rose, said, “the moment doctors advised that kidney transplantation is the best option, I readily agreed as I wanted to save my elder sister’s life. Being a nun, I had to get permission from the Church. The permission was granted without any delay when I gave a request to donate the kidney.”
She added that as the number of kidney failures has been increasing, and people should come forward to donate the kidney as it can save many lives.
The harvesting and transplantation was done by a medical team comprising of Dr Abi Abraham M, Director, Nephrology Department; Dr George P Abraham, Head, Urology Department and Dr Mohan A Mathew, Chief of Anesthesia and Critical Care and their team members at VPS Lakeshore.
While Sr. Dona Rose was discharged from the hospital on Wednesday, Sr Anitha Jose will be shifted from the intensive care unit (ICU), where she is under observation, in a couple of days. The siblings are daughters of Thomas Joseph and Eliamma Joseph of Punnakunnam in Alappuzha district.
(source: New Indian Express)