My second kidney op by son of surgeon who carried out the first

Family doctors: Bimbi and Ossie Fernando with Yvette Phillips
12 April 2012

A woman has had a second kidney transplant performed by the son of the surgeon who undertook the first one 34 years earlier.

Yvette Phillips became one of the youngest patients in the country to have the surgery when she was 10.

In 1977, consultant Ossie Fernando gave her the new organ in an operation at the Royal Free Hospital after she suffered renal failure and was left exhausted by having dialysis five days a week.

When the kidney started to fail last year, she was again referred to the hospital in Hampstead, and this time Ossie's son Bimbi carried out the procedure.

Mrs Phillips, 45, said: "I was delighted to have Ossie's son, Bimbi, as my surgeon. The transplant went very well and my new kidney is doing even better than my old kidney."

Mrs Phillips received her second kidney after taking part in an innovative "three-way" transplant.

It involved three couples whose partners were not compatible donors for their loved ones. Mrs Phillips's husband Alan donated his kidney to someone he never met. That person's partner donated a healthy kidney to someone else whose partner then donated a kidney to Mrs Phillips. The solution - which involved three simultaneous transplants in three hospitals - has only been possible since a change in the law in 2006.

Ossie Fernando said: "Yvette's story is a very positive one about transplantation. After her first transplant, she went on to have a family and a very fulfilling life. She was one of my youngest patients and it's been a pleasure to help her."

Bimbi Fernando added: "There is a special bond between Yvette and my family and we're so pleased we have been able to help. Yvette's story shows how having a kidney transplant enables you to lead a normal life and even if your kidney fails, you can have another transplant."

Speaking of her experiences during Transplant Week, Mrs Phillips, from Iver, Buckinghamshire, said: "If it weren't for Ossie, I wouldn't be here today.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in