Samantha Allred considers her mother to be her best friend. This week, the woman who gave her life, also gave her a kidney in a bid to give her a normal life away from dialysis.
To her mother, Jane Park, there was no question about donating a kidney to “my baby” and she was one of seven family members who put their hand up to be tested as a suitable donor.
“People say it is so amazing to donate a kidney, but actually it’s not. I don’t know a parent who wouldn’t do it for their child if they could. It’s being able to potentially give her a normal life and we’re born with spares (kidneys), so why wouldn’t you?”
It has been a long road since Samantha (Sam) was initially diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis at 17, then finally lupus at 21.
The autoimmune disease causes the body’s immune system to attack its own tissues and organs and for about five per cent of people with lupus, it attacks organs.
Sam has had chemotherapy to try and stop her body’s response, but it does not work for about one per cent of that five per cent.
She happened to be in that one per cent and her immune response led to kidney failure.
Specialists tried Rituximab to try and destroy her immune system so it wouldn’t destroy her kidneys.
Nothing worked though and the end result is she has got to know the dialysis unit really well, visiting it every second day for four-hour sessions.
Because her immune system can attack itself, she was not able to go on the waiting list for a kidney and she needed to find her own donor if she is to have a chance of living life without dialysis.
Jane was the first to go through a series of tests over several months, and came up as a match for Sam.
“We were matching and then I passed the psyche – which my husband was surprised about!”
For Sam, it is hard to find words to describe her gratitude towards her mum for donating her kidney.
“This is the woman who hasn’t just given me life but is going to save it. I could never repay her for what she is doing for me.
“There’s a bit of receiver’s guilt and I tried to talk her out of it because I don’t want my bad luck to be their burden to bear. But mum being mum, she was going to do it.
“My mum is my best friend without a doubt. As a teenager, we didn’t get on so well, but being sick got us closer because when you’re unwell, your life is put into perspective about what is important. And to me, family is big on my list of what I value in life.
“Mum was the one I’d call when I needed to go to A&E and she was there for all my appointments. She’s always there.”
Both Sam and Jane know her immune system may attack her mum’s kidney when it is transplanted into her body, but it is a risk worth taking.
Jane says that even if it is not successful, they will know they have done everything they can to make Sam’s life better and that will help going forward..
Throughout everything, Sam has remained positive and refuses to dwell on her illness.
She has also continued to work full-time at her job as a sales and accounts manager for PBT, often working from home and lately, during dialysis.
Having an understanding employer has not only helped her through her lupus journey, but also enabled her to build a house with her partner, Breydon Gallon.
The achievement of owning their first home has been the silver lining of her battle as she says they would not have achieved it so early if she had lived a normal life and spent her money on other things.
The kidney transplant took place on Monday in Wellington and, speaking with them last week, Jane expects her body to take a while to adjust as her remaining kidney works harder.
She is thankful that her employer, Tasman District Council, has been so supportive over the years and is giving her the time to recover.
Sam on the other hand is expecting to feel the best she has felt in years.
“I’ll be feeling over the moon. I haven’t felt normal since I was 18, so it is going to feel cool.”
