A FATHER who gave part of his liver to save his dying son has just celebrated the baby’s first birthday – a day he thought would never come.
Ross Wooding, 32, and his wife Polly, 30, were given the devastating news in February that their baby son
Hugo was in dire need of a transplant if he was to survive the rare liver disease he had been diagnosed with.
Because of Hugo’s rare blood type, B+, doctors warned it could take them up to a year to find a suitable organ.
But rather than wait up to a year for somebody to die so his son could live, Ross stepped forward to donate part of his own liver.
His bravery meant that on September 29, the family, from Deal, Kent, were able to celebrate Hugo's birthday.
Polly said: “We had in it our heads that Hugo wasn't going to make it to his birthday. We got so close to losing him.
“But now he's had the transplant he's doing well. It's lovely to see him acting like a normal, healthy little boy.”
Doctors at Margate Hospital, Kent, ran blood tests and a scan, which revealed he had a condition called biliary atresia.
Often found in newborns, it sees the bile ducts become inflamed or blocked, causing bile to build up in the liver and cause irreversible damage.
Following the transplant, Hugo stayed at hospital for three weeks so doctors could make sure his body didn't reject the liver.
Polly revealed: “Since then Hugo has not been back in to hospital and doctors say there is nothing they’re worried about. He’s doing well.
“Ross gets twinges. His body is still recovering. But he's back at work.”
She continues to record her son's story in her blog, Life of a Liver Mum.
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