A selfless mum will be seen by millions on TV on Monday as she saves the life of her little sister.....through the miracle of organ donation.
Debra Smith, 44, watched her sister Kimberley Bell struggle for years with kidney failure.
Mum-of-two Kimberley, 33, fell seriously ill when pregnant with her second child Kadie two years ago.
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Doctors asked if there was a suitable donor and tested her siblings including brother Craig, 39, and her partner Andrew Parry, 33.
But mum-of-two Debra was the perfect match. Their touching story is told in the first episode of C4's 'Geordie Hospital' tonight.
Debra breaks down in tears as she tells how hard it was to watch her little sister struggle on kidney dialysis for years.
And Kimberley is filmed as she worries 'more about Debra' than herself in the hours before the operation.
"When I fell pregnant, they told me I would not be able to go full term," said Kimberley, a full-time mum from Sunderland.
"I had her 11 weeks early and she was 1lb 9oz. I was born early too, we were both like little bags of sugar.
"I was at very high risk from Covid so I had to self-isolate for 12 weeks afterwards - my son Liam could not go to school.
"So I could not see Debra for a while and we could not be filmed together."
She added: "It changed my life instantly. I just feel healthy, I have more energy. I was so run down on dialysis."
Paying tribute to Debra, she said: "We don't show our feelings - but we know that we love each other, that I love her and she loves me.
"She saved my life. It shows what organ donation can do."
Mum-of-two Debra, who works with special needs children in patient transport, urged everyone to consider being a donor.
"It was very emotional," she said. "But I was so much better than I thought. I have transformed my sister's life, the difference is amazing.
"I don't feel any different to how I did before. I was frightened because I did not know what to expect.
"But having to watch my sister on dialysis every day, when she was so ill, was really tough."
Transplant surgeon Colin Wilson is filmed as he takes the kidney -which he calls 'Cassandra' - from one operating theatre to another.
"Keyhole surgery revolutionised the experience for the donor," he said.
"In the past you had to have a big incision.
"Now they can go home the next day or even on the same day.
"Within six weeks they are back to normal.
"It is a really important message - you are born with two kidneys, but only need one."
The Mirror campaigned for a change in legislation so that people who die in England are understood to be organ donors, unless they opt out.
It is predicted to save hundreds of lives a year.
Max and Keira’s Law came into force in May, named after our campaigner Max Johnson, 14, of Winsford, Cheshire, and his donor Keira Ball.
She was nine when she died in a tragic car accident near her home in Barnstaple, Devon in 2017.
To register your organ donation decision, you can visit: www.organdonation.nhs.uk or call 0300 123 23 23.
*'Geordie Hospital' goes out on Monday Jan 17 at 8pm on C4, then as a boxset on All4.
