A patient at University Hospitals Plymouth, who received his first kidney transplant 51 years ago, has written a book detailing his experiences of living with kidney disease throughout his life.

Andy Demaine, from St Germans, formerly a Professor of Molecular Medicine at the University of Plymouth, decided to document his patient journey and his lifetime achievements in order to help to educate and inspire others, as well as to aid understanding of the disease.

One of the longest-surviving kidney failure patients in the world, Andy (pictured right) received his first kidney transplant at the age of 13 in 1970, having succumbed to the disease a year earlier. Andy has chosen to celebrate the 47 years since his kidney transplant by publishing his biography, ‘My Kidney and Me: A Half Century Journey Overcoming Kidney Failure’.

Andy explained: “I was very fortunate to acquire copies of my medical records, spread out over the last 50 years, as they provide an accurate account of my care especially during the early days of treating kidney failure.”

He added: “People don’t seem to realise that a kidney transplant can actually last a very long time, having dialysis can be a pretty traumatic experience, and so it is really important to give hope to those going through it, and for them to know that their quality of life can be just as good as it was before.”

He was inspired by his treatment to go into researching kidney disease as a career, which led him to meet his wife Ann, who is also a former Consultant of Diabetes and Endocrinology at University Hospitals Plymouth and Associate Professor at the University of Plymouth. Together, their research has contributed to an understanding of the development and treatment of both kidney disease and diabetes.

My Kidney and Me: A Half Century Journey Overcoming Kidney Failure is available to buy on Amazon.