Another family inspired to donate organs

‘It’s not just a medical issue. It’s a humanitarian issue’

FOR THE second time this week a family has donated the organs of a deceased loved one, giving a new lease of life to five people, two of them Greek Cypriots.

Only days after the mother of 43-year-old Louis Ioannou donated his organs, the family of Fotos Karaoli, 48 from Akaki did the same.

Karaoli, who like Ioannou was a father of three, died of a stroke on Tuesday night. His organs were harvested yesterday with the help of a doctor who flew in from Israel.

Both of his kidneys were transplanted to Greek Cypriots at the Paraskevaidion Transplant Centre while his liver and two other organs went to help people in Israel.

Dr Georgios Kyriakides the director of the Paraskevaidion told Mega news that Karaoli’s family had given the gift of life to five people. “One is a 20-year old girl, a medical student who has had to interrupt her studies but I believe in two or three months she will be able to go back and complete them,” he said. “The other man is 58 and has been waiting for four years.”

Currently there are 131 people in Cyprus awaiting life-saving transplants and Kyaiakides said people should not lose the chance to help them if they can. “It’s not just a medical issue. It’s a humanitarian issue,” he said. “These people are waiting from one day to the next to know whether they are going to live or die”.

So far this year the organs of eight people were given for donation, Last year there were only four. In 2005 there was only one. In 2004 there were eight and in 2003, again only one.

Ioannou’s mother Melpo made a public appeal when she donated her son’s organs at the weekend. “I am calling on everyone to do the same; the pain is immense, but when you know you will be giving life to other people, you should donate his organs,” she said.

“I know my son would have wanted to do this. He would have wanted it. I did this on behalf of my son, a very special person. I said from the start that I wanted his organs to be donated to save other lives.”

Ioannou’s organs went to three people.

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