A mom faced choosing between donating her kidney to her son or daughter, who both suffer from the same genetic disorder.
Sarah Bingham, 41, of Northumberland, UK, had to consider the decision when her two eldest children, 20-year-old Noah and 16-year-old Ariel, were diagnosed with nephronophthisis, a condition which impairs kidney function through inflammation and scarring.
The problems started in 2016 for Ariel, whose perpetual tiredness was initially blamed on exam stress. In July that year, she was taken to hospital with a severe stomach ache, the BBC reported.
Testing revealed that her kidneys were only functioning at 25% capacity, which has since decreased to 17%, according to The Mirror.
In 2019, Noah Bingham was diagnosed with nephronophthisis after becoming violently ill and vomiting blood, just days before he was due to begin studying astrophysics at university, the BBC added.
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He also has gastroparesis, a condition in which the stomach does not empty properly, which has led to severe weight loss, according to The Sun. He needs dialysis, which his sister Ariel was able to avoid.
Both now need a kidney transplant and their father, 49-year-old Darryl Bingham, cannot donate as he has a different blood type, so the tough decision was left to Mrs. Bingham, The Mirror added.
She told Wales Online: “It was really hard knowing that both my children needed a kidney, but I only had one I could give. It was an incredibly hard decision to make and nobody can make it for you”.
Read more: Insider
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