Life-saving gift from a husband

Paul Snaddon is unlikely to be able to top his most recent gift to his wife - a second chance at life.

He went under the knife in July to donate a kidney that will enable his wife, Carol, to stop constant dialysis and live normally for the first time in years.

As the pair recover in their Napier home, Mr Snaddon, 58, declared he had the serious surgery "for love", though the candid remark was quickly qualified with a cheeky addition: "It means I don't have to cook so many meals, and I've finally done something right in my wife's eyes."

Only the second person to ever donate a kidney through advanced laparoscopic surgery at Wellington Hospital, Mr Snaddon had four incisions made in his abdomen so keyhole cameras could enter his body. With his abdomen blown up "like a balloon", the kidney was extracted through a small hole above his pelvis, meaning minimal impact and quick recovery.

"I was up the next day walking to see Carol. It was astonishing to see how the transplant changed her instantly. The texture of her skin was improved, the yellow in her eyes had gone. It has given her a second chance," Mr Snaddon said.

Mrs Snaddon, 42, has had kidney reflux for more than 20 years and late last year her condition deteriorated rapidly, requiring strong medication and dialysis treatments three times daily.

The chances of Mr Snaddon's unrelated tissue and blood type being compatible with his wife were low.

"The specialist gave me the blood test results and it was a match. It was an overwhelming sense of relief and in the week of the operation I kept saying to everyone that I was the luckiest woman in the world," Mrs Snaddon said.

Only one live donor transplant is made each month at Wellington hospital and witnessing the success of the Snaddon's transplant is what the renal team say the job is all about.

"I'm going to die a lot sooner than she is," Mr Snaddon said. "So it's nice to think there will still be a part of me walking about after I'm gone."