Adam Isaac is no stranger to the spotlight. As a finalist on television's The Voice in 2012, he sang to millions of viewers and worked with Sir Tom Jones.
But his latest performances have been particularly special.
The 39-year-old has spent the past two years battling severe kidney failure and is waiting for a transplant.
Yet Adam has continued with his singing career between dialysis sessions, entertaining guests at Wimbledon and the Epsom Derby.
Last week he not only played at the opening ceremony of the European Transplant and Dialysis Games but he won a golf medal, too.
Adam says: "I was so proud to be part of it. Music has helped me through so much so I found it very emotional, seeing all those people with various medical challenges, from different countries, with big smiles."
"I was on the verge of tears and I was concerned I might break down while singing."
He adds: "There have been times when I felt like all the energy had left my body, but I kept performing because it is what I love and I do not know what will happen next."
Adam inspired one of most memorable moments from the first series of the BBC talent show as his blind audition left Sir Tom and fellow coach Will.i.am competing to be his mentor.
They even resorted to name-dropping their work with Elvis Presley and Michael Jackson in a bid to sway his decision.
Yet a decade later, his life is more dramatic than any primetime show. After Adam was diagnosed, his mum Sue offered him one of her kidneys. She was a good match and was all set to donate until disaster struck.
He explains: "In the last round of tests, they found a tumour on one of her kidneys. It meant she couldn’t donate, she was devastated.
"But the most important thing was they got rid of her tumour. If it wasn’t for those tests, they might not have found it in time."
When Adam, from Sonning Common in Oxfordshire, developed itchy, dry skin five years ago, he assumed he had eczema.
In reality, it was the first sign of kidney failure. By the time he went to A&E in December 2020, he had crippling fatigue and headaches that he believed were caused by a dental abscess.
He was diagnosed with IgA nephropathy, a disease caused by a build-up of antibodies that left his kidneys badly scarred and functioning at just 8% of their normal capacity.
Adam says: "I heard one young doctor say it looked like I needed dialysis and a transplant. My blood pressure was so high that if it carried on I would have been at risk of having a stroke."
He spent 10 days in hospital, returning home for Christmas, but could not see his family in Devon until March due to lockdown. By that time, he had started peritoneal dialysis.
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Adam explains: "I would load my van, drive to the gig and do dialysis backstage. At the Epsom Derby, I did it in my van, played a few sets, then did it behind a bar."
By the end of the summer, Adam was playing up to four gigs a week. He also spent four days recording new material. But weeks later, his partner Lucy was driving them home from a gig in Devon when he began suffering agonising stomach pains.
He says: "We pulled into services in Bristol. I lay on my side on the grass verge for two hours waiting for an ambulance. The pain was horrendous. I had the infection peritonitis.
"They tried to flush the line with antibiotics, but it didn't work. They had to rip it out and fit a haemodialysis line in my neck."
Adam now attends hospital three times a week but keeps performing.
He says: "I played at Rewind Festival at Scone Palace near Perth in Scotland a few weeks ago. My band and partner drove up with the equipment, while I stayed behind to have dialysis.
"I then flew to Scotland, got a taxi and was on stage an hour later."
One of Adam's consultants also recruited him to perform at the launch of the European Transplant and Dialysis Games at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire.
The Games – the first time they have been staged UK – featured more than 400 contestants from 25 countries.
Adam was also one of just 12 dialysis patients to compete as part of the British team. He won a silver medal in his class, playing golf
alongside a double lung transplant recipient from Switzerland.
He adds: "I used to play a lot and wanted to be a pro when I was young. But I was a bit nervous as it was four years since I had played in a competition. It was a surprise to win a medal.
"More importantly, it was inspiring to hear the experiences of transplant patients. I hope I don’t have to wait much longer for a transplant. It would be nice to have a break from dialysis and focus on my music."
For more information about the Games and organ donation, visit transplantsport.org.uk/event/european-transplant-dialysis-games.
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