My family will always be a part of me
Emily Hibberd discusses having her second kidney transplant at 21 years old with another family member to be the donor
People often say that they would give someone their kidney as a term of endearment.
What they probably don’t know is that kidney transplants are only temporary.
No matter how strong the bond between Emily Hibberd and her father Darren, it wouldn’t make any difference to the short-lived success of his kidney inside her.
Seeing Emily straight after an appointment to discuss her second kidney transplant was eye-opening.
She’s just 21 years old.
It was less than a month since the family found out that Darren’s kidney had crashed after six years of functioning in Emily.
They thought that they wouldn’t see the day until she was at least 30.
Emily came in wearing a sweatshirt and joggers set from Urban Outfitters and a smile.
Her medical condition was completely invisible, but she radiated a sense of bravery.
She sat next to her mum, Anna, on the sofa and they shared the journey from her first kidney transplant at the age of 15 to now, preparing for the second.
Photograph by Anna Hibberd of Emily in the Evelina London Children's Hospital
Photograph by Anna Hibberd of Emily in the Evelina London Children's Hospital
Photograph by Anna Hibberd of Emily in her hospital bed with her iPad and colouring book
Photograph by Anna Hibberd of Emily in her hospital bed with her iPad and colouring book
In January 2016, Emily began having sore knees and wasn’t walking well.
Perhaps not an obvious symptom of kidney failure, and not one she experienced during the second crash.
Doctors told Emily that she had growing pains and referred her to a physio.
Like any fourteen-year-old, Emily insisted on going on her ski trip in the February despite the pain.
Little did they know it was soon to get much worse.
Throughout April, Emily was very poorly.
She would frequently be sick and had a urine infection.
When Emily wasn’t getting any better, Anna took her to the doctors where they found out her blood pressure was high, and she had low levels of haemoglobin.
They ran some more tests.
On the 26th of May 2016, Emily was diagnosed with a ‘kidney crash’.
It was the end of her football season.
It was a day meant to be celebrated.
The parents had arranged for the team to go zorbing as a fun end-of-season activity.
Emily was at the field ready when Anna got the phone call.
They were about to be rushed to the Evelina London Children’s Hospital as Emily’s kidneys were at 5% function and she needed to go on dialysis immediately.
Emily was on dialysis for over a year, seven nights a week for twelve hours at home, before she was well enough to have the transplant.
Darren and Emily were on operating tables at the same time, but in different hospitals across London.
Surgeons had to take Darren’s kidney out and have it transported it through the city to Emily.
The transplant took place on the 11th of July 2017.
Photograph by Anna Hibberd of a dialysis machine extracting the waste and excess fluid from Emily's body
Photograph by Anna Hibberd of a dialysis machine extracting the waste and excess fluid from Emily's body
Two weeks before Easter this year, Emily caught COVID and it was difficult to distinguish whether she was feeling unwell because of that or if there was a problem with the kidney.
She had another urine infection, but also a high temperature and chest pain.
It wasn’t until she became visibly swollen that there were concerns.
Darren’s kidney was no longer removing the waste and excess fluid in Emily’s body.
She was diagnosed again on Good Friday 2023.
Unlike the first crash that happened gradually over a long period of time, this one was practically overnight.
It devastated the family.
The average time for a transplant to last is around 20 years.
“For me what’s really sad is that I wanted her to be another 10 years older. I was hoping she would be married and have kids before the next transplant and it would be a completely different situation.”
Emily had such a miraculous six years with Darren’s kidney that Anna said she had almost forgotten they would have to go through the whole thing again.
“Most people have a few blips along the way. I hadn’t had one blip and then it just went.”
This could've been because surgeons noticed some damage to Darren’s kidney during the transplant.
They had to take it out and start again, so it is unclear as to whether the damage was previously there or if it was done during the procedure.
Finding out that the kidney had crashed so soon was particularly difficult for Darren.
He said that he feels like he has failed Emily and wishes it could’ve worked for longer.
Emily’s next donor is still undecided, but it's likely to be either Anna, her older brother James, or her younger sister Chloe.
While Anna was a match last time and would prefer it to be her to donate, Emily’s antibodies may have changed.
It all depends on who is the closest match.
They'll find out in three weeks.
Between now and the next transplant, which is meant to be in September, Emily has to work towards being as healthy as possible.
She currently has a fluid restriction of one litre to drink a day and there is an extensive list of food and drink that she can’t have.
This includes different types of alcohol, fizzy drinks, and fruit.
It’s not the normal life of a 21-year-old.
As much as Emily tries not to let her situation control her life, it upsets her mum seeing her go through 12 hours of dialysis a week, including 4 hours on a Saturday night while her friends are at the pub.
Emily hopes to go to Portugal with her friends at the end of June, but currently, her levels of haemoglobin are too low to fly.
Even in Portugal, Emily will have to book and pay for dialysis at the nearest hospital.
She’ll need three sessions during the holiday and now that the UK is no longer part of the EU, it'll cost £150 each time.
The Hibberd’s are extremely grateful for the NHS and the standard of care Emily has received since her first kidney crash.
There are many reasons why Emily’s story is unique, but her attitude is what makes it remarkable.
A neighbour of the family summed up how Emily deals with her difficult circumstances: “She treats it like it’s just another thing, like going shopping.”
Emily takes each day as it comes and doesn’t let it get her down.
She appreciates the little things, like a carbonara from Prezzo, and she’s a role model to all young people who face hurdles in their health.
Built with Shorthand