Sister of hand donor meets hand recipient to support organ and tissue donation

The sister of a deceased hand donor has met the lady who received the double hand transplant.

Deborah Gosling met recipient Corinne Hutton to support the NHS Blood and Transplant campaign for more people to donate organs and tissue to save and improve lives.

Waiting lists are currently their highest in a decade and there is an urgent need for more people to support donation on the NHS Organ Donor Register.

Deborah's twin sister Julie Wild, a mum of two boys and a phlebotomist at Sheffield Children's Hospital, died of a sudden brain haemorrhage in January 2019, aged 51.

Her pancreas, liver, and both kidneys were all donated for lifesaving and life improving transplants.

Her family also agreed to donate her hands through NHS Blood and Transplant to the special hand transplant programme at Leeds Teaching Hospitals.

Hand transplants are not part of the NHS Organ Donor Register but if the donor is a match for an individual patient in the programme, the NHSBT specialist nurses can raise the option of hand donation.

NHSBT Blood and Transplant arranges meetings when both parties wish to meet. Deborah and Corinne agreed to meet and also be filmed to help promote organ, tissue, and hand donation.

Deborah and Corinne meet

Corinne, aged 54, from Lochwinnoch in Scotland, lost her hands and legs to sepsis in 2013, then received the double hand transplant in 2019 in a 12-hour operation.

She has become an advocate for organ donation and also founded the charity Finding Your Feet, which supports families affected by amputation or limb absence.

When Deborah met Corinne at the Queen’s Hotel in Leeds, they exchanged an emotional and hug and exchanged a few words through tears.

They had a longer conversation off-camera and have kept in touch with messages ever since – Deborah also went to cheer Corinne on at a half marathon in Edinburgh.

Deborah's experience

Deborah, a mum of one, said: "No-one ever had a bad word to say about Julie. We were twins, I am the older by half an hour.

"It's very emotional to think of the meeting. I always wanted to meet Corinne and I will always keep in touch.

"I think what science has done is amazing. It's hard to describe but it's quite comforting to know someone has got her hands, that part of her lives on in a way. I couldn't take my eyes off them when we met.

"They could not have gone to anyone better. Corinne is an incredible woman and it's fantastic that she's so grateful to her donor.

"We've followed her Corinne's recovery in the news and it has been a huge source of comfort and pride for us as a family."

She added: "The donation is definitely a source of comfort. Julie's organs saved lives and her hands have transformed Corinne's life. I'd say to other people – don't hesitate. What good are your organs and limbs when you have passed away?"

Corinne's experience

Corinne Hutton said: "Waiting to meet Deborah and Julie’s boys was like waiting to meet long lost family. I was very nervous.

"Meeting the family was something I was very prepared to do if they wanted to meet me.

"But most of all I wanted them to know I was grateful.

"I felt such empathy and a connection because my own parents were asked about the possibility of organ donation when I was in intensive care.

"I knew it must have been a traumatic time for Julie's family. I was just so aware of how generous they were to decide to donate.

"I was hopeful that for Deborah, holding the hands and touching and seeing them would give them some light after an otherwise dark situation."

She added: "I also wanted to know what Julie did with her hands – it turned out she drank white wine and sang karaoke!

"We got on so well together that before I was up the road, Deborah was texting me. It was lovely when Deborah came to support me at the half marathon. We keep in touch through messages, like happy birthdays and Merry Christmas."

She added: "I hope people watching the video will take a feeling of confidence and comfort in the organ donation and transplantation system."

Corinne said that now she has about 95% function in her right hand and about 75% in her left hand.

She said: "I spend a lot of time looking at them and showing them to people and of course I remember Julie every single time.

"I always make sure my nails are perfect. That's important to me as they feel right and I feel they are mine and I didn't have nice hands before. But it's also respect for Julie as well.

"The difference the transplant has made has been absolutely life changing. I'm so grateful to Julie and her family. I'll never forget that I am lucky and I will never forget where they've come from. And hopefully, I will give them a good life."

Statements

Statement from Anthony Clarkson

Anthony Clarkson, Director of Organ and Tissue Donation and Transplantation, said:

"No transplant - and no new transplant programme - is possible without the selfless generosity of donors and their families.

"This is an incredibly powerful story. Julie sounded like a lovely, giving person. Corinne has done so much to raise awareness of limb transplantation.

"We have supported the hand transplant programme for more than a decade. If there's the potential for organ donation, our Specialist Nurses in Organ Donation will also consider limb donation, and if there's a match to specific patient have a discussion with the family in a sensitive way. Many families will give serious consideration if they think it's what their families would have wanted.

"There's an urgent need for the donation of organs and tissue. Families take great comfort and pride knowing that their loved has given an amazing gift to somebody in need. We urge people to support donation on the NHS Organ Donor Register and to tell their families they want to donate."

Statement from Gordon Crowe

Gordon Crowe, Regional Head of Nursing for NHSBT's Yorkshire team, said:

"It's been one of the highlights of my career to help ensure those patients who require the very specific need for a limb transplant can receive one.

"The donor families who say 'yes' to limb donation see it as a very special way to help someone in need of a transplant beyond that of solid organ donation. We have seen how patients treasure and utilise that gift. Organ and tissue donation doesn't just save lives, it improves lives beyond measure."

Statement from Professor Simon Kay

Professor Simon Kay, consultant plastic surgeon, Leeds Teaching Hospitals, said:

"I believe that limb transplants are life-rescuing and probably life-saving, we see it with our patients and their gratitude to their donors knows no bounds.

"This film provides a vital spotlight on those incredible donor families who, in their most difficult moments, decide to support specialist nurses in facilitating these gifts of new life."

Support organ donation on the NHS Organ Donor Register.