It has been a terrifying six months for Kieron Dyer, who recently found out he will need a liver transplant after being diagnosed with primary sclerosing cholangitis.
The 43-year-old was told he had the life-changing health condition shortly after he appeared on Sky Sports as Newcastle United played against Tottenham Hotspur back in October. Some viewers were concerned about Dyer, who then went for tests in hospital and found out he an issue that causes serious liver damage.
Now, Dyer is patiently waiting for a donor, so he can undergo a transplant in order to survive the disease. He can never travel more than two hours from Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge in case a liver becomes available. And Dyer has opened up on dealing with the condition.
He told the Daily Mail: "If I don’t have the transplant my liver will pack in. There would be nothing they could do for me."
"I am just thankful that they have found out what’s wrong with me. I’m aware I’m dependent on someone else’s misfortune giving me the chance to live a long and happy life."
He added: "My greatest hope is that, whoever’s liver I get, I do that person proud. They encourage you to touch base with the family of your donor after your operation and that’s something I thoroughly intend to do.
"It would give me some comfort, I think, if I was in the situation of a family who had lost a loved one. They would have lost someone they have cherished and loved but through their generosity they have given someone else the chance of a long life.
"I hope I’ll earn their legacy. I wouldn’t want to screw that up. I know how precious a second chance would be."
After retiring, Dyer took up a role as an academy coach at his first club Ipswich Town in 2014, becoming assistant manager of the under-18 youth team four years later. He departed the club in 2019 with an intention to become a first-team manager - which never came - and he returned to Ipswich to become the head coach of the under-23 side in October 2020.
Dyer was more involved in first-team affairs when Paul Cook was boss, before the former Newcastle midfielder was forced to step away from the game due to his health condition.
"I was really scared when I got told I needed a liver transplant," he said. "I thought that was it. But then when the surgeon and the transplant team came round, they have got so many people in the team, co-ordinators, the anaesthetists, physios and psychiatrists. And you see people who have overcome the operation. It’s kind of routine for the hospital now, they do so many of them.
"Your family and people close to you panic when you tell them. I could see when I told people, I could see the dread on them. It gave me the mental side back. I am not putting bravado on but you have to find that inner strength, not just for you but for them. They’re worried but I’m not worried.
"I just feel that the way my life has been in the last six months, I am constantly fatigued and I can’t do what I used to do."
