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My story of a heart transplant
by
Jeffrey Whitford, Lisburn
VICE CHAIRMAN of The Northern Ireland Transplant Association
Jeffrey and Sheelagh Whitford
"The Gift of Life"
In the spring of 1975 I was feeling very unwell. As I was only 24 years old I made an appointment to see my GP and was surprised that I had to go straight to the cardiac unit of the Lagan Valley Hospital in Lisburn. My heart rate was extremely fast, around 200 beats per minute. The medical staff in the hospital stabilised my heart rate. However, they would not treat my illness, so I was referred to the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast. There I was finally diagnosed with congestive cardiomyopathy. In my case the muscle tissue in the right side of my heart had thickened so the pumping action did not function properly.
I was constantly tired and any sort of exercise gave me pain at the base of my chest and I became short of breath.
I was a young man, not long married with two small children. At times I despaired of seeing my children grow to adulthood. I left work to become a house-husband in June 1978. This helped my heart a lot but I was still slowly deteriorating. My doctors implanted a pacemaker in the spring of 1980 and this improved the pumping action of my heart and I felt a little better but it was still only buying time and was not a cure
When my cardiologist suggested a transplant I could not fully comprehend all it could mean. This was in the Autumn of 1985. I was sent over to Papworth Hospital in Cambridge, England in December 1985 for assessment and I had a positive answer.
 Again I was very fortunate in that I didn't have long to wait. I received the call on the 14th April 1986 and I received my new heart at 11 pm that night at Papworth Hospital.
The operation was, by their standards, quite straight forward and I progressed fairly well. I had some rejection but that was treated. I stayed in hospital for about 3 weeks and in a flat in Papworth Village for 2 weeks. I was sent home 5 weeks and 1 day after my transplant looking forward to a new happy healthy life with my family. I did have some rejection in the first few months but, again, it was successfully treated and I soon established a new routine for myself.
 Since then I have been very fortunate that any of my problems have been resolved. I now live a good fulfilling life. My wife and I celebrated our 27th wedding anniversary last year and our older daughter is married and our younger one is working in her chosen career. Life is good and there is not a day I do not give thanks for my transplant. I am Vice Chairman of The Northern Ireland Transplant Association so I can help those waiting for their operations and share my experiences with others in the same situation. i am now a proud Grandfather since 2004.
Please carry the donor card and sign the organ donor register on Freephone 0800 606040
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