This week, 16-year-old Fotini from Cyprus traveled to Israel to receive a lifesaving kidney transplant after her two previous surgeries were postponed due to the war with Iran earlier this year. What makes her story especially remarkable is the four-person donor chain in Israel that not only saved Fotini’s life, but three others as well. Schneider Children’s Medical Center and Beilinson Hospital in Petah Tikva, where the surgeries were performed, shared the story.
The first donor was 52-year-old Assaf Mor, an Arab Israeli father of four who volunteered to donate one of his kidneys after Fotini’s mother was found to be an incompatible donor. Fotini suffers from a genetic disorder that causes kidney damage. Mor said he had always hoped for the opportunity to become a living donor, and his selfless decision set the chain in motion.
Although Fotini’s mother could not donate to her daughter, she was found to be a match for another kidney transplant patient, 27-year-old Hana Shaaban, whose previous kidney transplant had failed after complications from a COVID-19 infection. Hana’s husband then donated his kidney to another patient, whose wife completed the chain by donating her kidney to a fourth recipient. In just 12 hours, Fotini, Hana, and two other patients all received successful kidney transplants.
Dr. Eviatar Nesher, head of the Transplant Department at Beilinson Hospital, called the operation one of the strongest examples of medical cooperation between Cyprus and Israel.
He said, “Four cross-kidney transplants are a moving, unique, and extremely complex event, from identifying compatible donors and recipients to the day of surgery.”
The donor chain brought together Jewish, Christian, and Muslim donors and recipients, demonstrating how compassion and generosity can transcend religious and cultural differences. All four patients have now been discharged from the hospital and are beginning new chapters in their lives, united by the extraordinary gift of hope they helped give one another.