Tucker to get kidney

08.June.07

The greatest gift that Alison Tucker could give her brother Rawlson is the opportunity to live a normal life, even if it costs her a kidney.

That’s actually what Alison is planning to do after months of watching her little brother suffering from failed kidneys.{{more}}

The once healthy Rawlson, who suddenly fell ill about a year ago says his sister’s decision comes as a relief and a blessing.

“This is the greatest gift I can ever receive and I count this as a blessing,” 29-year-old Tucker said, speaking to Searchlight last week Wednesday from his Chateaubelair home. “It’s a relief to finally get to do this surgery, and I’m looking forward to the pain easing up.”

Tucker claims to have done extensive reading on kidney transplants, and is confident that the operation will be successful and will give him the opportunity to live easier.

Previously, Tucker had traveled to Cuba, where he had studied Electrical engineering for six years, to try to have his situation dealt with.

The trip turned out to be unsuccessful, and on his return home, he was referred to Dr. Malcolm Samuel of Surgical Associates.

Dr. Samuel, a general surgeon and former national scholar, has been working with the National Organ Transplant Unit in Trinidad and Tobago which offers concessions for persons in the Eastern Caribbean to receive transplants and treatment for kidney and cornea transplants.

Samuel said that of the 15 transplants done at the facility, 14 were 100 percent successful.

He expects Tucker’s operation to go well because of the compatibility of his and his sister’s blood group and tissue. Tucker’s father had volunteered as well but was not as compatible as Alison.

Tucker will be the first Vincentian to undergo a kidney transplant at the Trinidad facility and Samuel hopes to be the operating surgeon.

Samuel is encouraging persons with kidney problems to come forward and seek treatment, and also urged persons to register to an organ donation programme.

He stated that a person’s quality of life is much better with a transplant than dialysis, and that donating an organ to family or close friend is a selfless act and makes a strong statement. (JJ)