After years of refusing to hope that he would ever receive a lung transplant, Amsterdamhoek resident Peter Moore got the best news of his life this week.
After 20 years of struggling to breathe, he has been placed on the transplant list for a new set of lungs.
Moore, 54, a former navy marine, suffered irreparable damage to his lungs 20 years ago when he accidentally inhaled chlorine gas while rescuing children from a creche in Sandton.
He was diagnosed with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
The head of the Groote Schuur Hospital transplant team, Dr Greg Calligaro, said Groote Schuur’s lung transplant programme had been launched in November 2017.
“This was after several years of preparation, which involved members of the team going abroad for training in high-volume transplant centres. Our first bilateral lung transplant was in December 2017.
“This is the only programme in SA – or, to our knowledge, the rest of Africa – offering transplants to funded [medical aid] and unfunded [state] patients,” he said.
Calligaro said Moore had been referred to him by his doctor at Livingstone Hospital, Dr Liz van der Merwe.
He said the biggest bottleneck in the programme was availability of organ donors.“If my journey up to now has taught me anything,” Moore said, “it is this – I am going to spend the rest of my life advocating to get more organ donors on the list.”
Moore is now one of two Nelson Mandela Bay residents who are awaiting a lung transplant at Groote Schuur.
Vanessa Neveling, 25, who suffers from cystic fibrosis, is on the urgent list for a new set of lungs.
“I am now moving to Cape Town and will be waiting for the call,” Moore said.
Those on the list must be close to Groote Schuur as donor lungs are viable for only two hours.
Moore’s lung capacity is about 20% at the moment, but despite this he has completed the SPAR River Mile and done a 7km swim in an icy Sundays River in July to raise awareness for organ donation and for Neveling’s trust.
He did not previously qualify for a lung transplant because he did not have a medical aid. “A few months ago, I resigned myself to the fact that I would not be getting new lungs,” he said. “Amazing how quickly things can change.”
Moore has just endured two weeks of extensive clinical tests, as well as alcohol and drug screenings and an evaluation by a psychologist and a psychiatrist to determine whether he could be a recipient.
“It was really hectic,” he said. “I never had so many needles in my arm before,” he said.
“You have to check every single block. I was nervous every time,” he said.
“But you understand it, donor lungs are so rare they really can’t afford to give them to someone who will waste them,” he said.
Meanwhile Moore still plans to swim 700m for Neveling on September 27.
“I want to swim at 7pm at night. At the same time my daughter, Nicole, and her friends will be running 1.7km in Pretoria, a group of cyclists will be cycling 17km in Port Elizabeth and one of the physiotherapists here at the hospital and her friends will be climbing 700m up Table Mountain.
“I hope to get events going all over the country to create awareness for organ donation,” he said.Moore said he would be travelling to Port Elizabeth soon but was suffering from a bad flare-up at the moment.
“My lung function is deteriorating faster. A few months ago, it was at 23.8% and now it is at 20%.
“I can feel my ability to do things diminishing,” he said.
This has, however, not deterred him from making big plans.
“I am going to start exercising like never before. I want to be fitter and healthier than I have ever been. I will be training for the most important event of my life,” he said.
He said the surgery itself was incredibly high-risk.
“I know I might not get through it, but it is worth a try,” he said.
He has asked for permission to have his surgery filmed to tell people about the wonders of organ donation.
He said the nervous wait for a new set of lungs had already started.
“I am lucky in the respect that I have a very common blood type, A-positive. For once it helped me being common,” he laughed.
The new lungs will be in for a very uncommon adventure, though.
“A year after my transplant, I am going to complete an Ironman,” he said.
“This is a reset button for my life.”
He said for a long time he had not allowed himself to think how it would feel to breathe normally.
“Now I think about it again. I am also thinking about things like buying new running shoes. I couldn’t even consider that for a long time.”
“It is a long road with no guarantees for me. But it is all in God’s hands. I have never been this excited,” he said.
Moore said he also wanted to ask residents of Nelson Mandela Bay to pray for new lungs for Neveling.
“If I can ask that people say a prayer for Vanessa as well. She is such a fighter and she really needs new lungs so badly.”