A MATTER OF LIFE OR DEATH
Life and death battles don’t figure only in wars. People all over the world are battling the COVID virus. Conversely, people battling a chronic disease are facing a life or death situation, against much greater odds. Since dialysis is a temporary solution, people suffering from kidney failure are faced with no other alternative but a kidney implant. The kidney’s main task is to filter toxins and remove excess water from the bloodstream. Healthy people have four to five times the kidney capacity needed for this. Even with one remaining kidney, there is still plenty of spare function and one can live a perfectly normal life. An organisation called “Matnat Chaim” “The Gift of Life” was established in 2009 by Rabbi Yeshayahou Haver who himself was the recipient of a kidney donated by a friend. He was prompted from witnessing tragic situations - such as the death from kidney failure of a young 15 year old boy, whose older soldier brother was killed by terrorists. They w...