A MAN and his sister are on the mend after a life-saving transplant.
Salendine Nook woman Lesley Rhodes has given her brother Mark Weavill the ultimate gift - one of her kidneys.
Now she is recuperating at home after a seven-hour operation.
And Mark is making good progress in St James's Hospital in Leeds.
Lesley, 45, went into the hospital last week to give her brother, a Type 1 diabetic, one of her kidneys.
Mark, 44, has lost both legs to the condition and also has dialysis three times a week.
The Examiner exclusively revealed the siblings' pact back in March.
At that stage Lesley, who is married with three children, was waiting to hear whether she would be able to give a life-saving kidney to her brother.
She heard in early March that her organs were a match for her brother.
So she set about losing more than a stone and stopping smoking to physically prepare her body for the rigours of the surgical procedure.
At lunchtime last Friday Mark and Lesley were wheeled into the operating theatre. The operation to remove Lesley's kidney was due to take about four hours.
She said: "I was very nervous beforehand, but it was something that was very important to me and something I was committed to.
"I think that commitment stopped me being as scared.
"The operation actually took seven hours rather than four.
"I think my family were worried as to what had happened when I was late out."
Lesley said the delay stemmed from a problem in removing the kidney.
Mark came out of the operating theatre about 90 minutes after Lesley.
She said: "When I woke up I was very sore. It is still very uncomfortable.
"When they told me it had worked I was overjoyed.
"It is a serious operation and I was just so happy everything had worked out.
"It will really make an impact on Mark's life. It will extend it, he will not have to use dialysis any more and he can take in more fluids.
"Previously he was limited to just one litre a day.
"But yesterday the doctors told him to drink four litres of water.
"These are massive, life-changing things. I'm just so happy I could help."
Meanwhile, Mark's immune system is low, due to suppression drugs to stop his body rejecting his sister's kidney.
But Lesley added: I can't wait to see him home.
"I'm so glad I did it. It was tough - but it was the right thing to do!"
