Two Aussies pledge organs to AIIMS
Two Australian nationals, on a mission to raise awareness and funds about chronic kidney diseases, became the first foreigners to pledge organ donation to India’s premier health institute, the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here on Saturday.
A top official of the Organ Retrieval and Banking Organisation at AIIMS said that Stephane Etienne, 34, and Paul Torriero, 42, were given their organ donors card on Saturday afternoon. The two Australian nationals are on their first trans-continental three-month journey to raise funds for chronic kidney diseases’ research at the Sydney Children’s Hospital. The official informed that Stephane, along with another friend Steve, had undertaken a 30,000-km motorcycle ride from Paris to Sydney in July to raise funds for chronic kidney diseases.
For Stephane, there is a personal reason for setting out on the journey, seeking help and hoping to raise awareness about kidney diseases.
His son, now one-year-old, was born with a defect called hypoplastic (underdeveloped) kidney.
He said that in the entire process of hunting for an organ donor for his son, he realised the need for organ donation and awareness on organ donation.
In the developed countries, the waiting period for an organ transplant was more than four to five years.
The situation motivated Stephane, who joined hands with Paul, to set up a foundation, WorldRiderZ, for helping the families all over the world grappling with the diagnosis and prognosis of chronic kidney diseases. Stephane said that his son will have to wait for some more time before doctors transplant one of his kidneys in him.
AIIMS officials said that the poor record of organ donation in the country was primarily due to lack of awareness.
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