Liver transplant recipient Liam Manson, of Dunedin, recalls his life before the life-changing surgery. PHOTO: LINDA ROBERTSON Liam Manson openly admits: ‘‘I looked like death warmed up’’. Doctors had given the father of two less than three months to live and his only chance for survival was a liver transplant. ‘‘I was constantly sleeping, I could never stay awake, always lethargic, and I was just looking horrible because my skin was always yellow.’’ Yesterday, nearly a year after his successful liver transplant, the 30-year-old Dunedin design engineer looked back on his old life and marvelled at how much it had changed. When he was 13, he was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis and, by the time he was 16, he had had all of his large intestine removed and was given a stoma. ‘‘It was a real issue for a young guy. ‘‘I couldn’t go out anywhere without knowing where the toilets were and with the stoma, you’ve got a bag on — so I couldn’t take my shirt off. ‘‘It was always a hindrance.’’ Later, he developed small duct syndrome, which started to affect his liver function. But in 2023, after a bout of Covid-19, he was diagnosed with autoimmune hepatitis — a chronic disease where his immune system was mistakenly attacking his liver cells, causing his liver to start failing. ‘‘I guess the real issue happened last year when my liver finally failed. ‘‘It all just went south and it instantly put me in hospital.’’ Mr Manson relaxes with fiancee Dione Cairns and their children Asher Cairns, 7, and Mackenzie Manson, 2. PHOTO: SUPPLIED Doctors gave him less than three months to live and he was added to the liver transplant list. That was when his life started to flash by. ‘‘They medivaced me up to Auckland instantly. I didn’t even get to say goodbye to my partner or my kids.’’ Once he got to Auckland, it was then that the situation started to dawn on him. ‘‘That was when I started thinking about my kids and my mortality. ‘‘I was ringing home and trying not to break down on the phone.’’ Following his transplant surgery, he said he felt like he had been ‘‘hit by a train’’ and his recovery was ‘‘a very slow process’’. But a year later, he was back to his normal colour, he had ‘‘tonnes more energy’’ and he was loving being able to play with his children, Mr Manson said. He said it was difficult to find the words to express the gratitude he felt for his organ donor. ‘‘How do you thank a donor or their family for something like that? ‘‘It’s been a life-changing thing for me. I’m able to live a normal life again. ‘‘Thank you for letting other people, not just me, have more time with their family.’’ He said one of the things he could do with his ‘‘rare’’ second chance at life was not take anything for granted and make the most of every opportunity. As soon as he got out of hospital and returned to Dunedin, he proposed to his fiancee Dione Cairns. Now they are looking forward to something less stressful, relatively speaking: planning their wedding. Mr Manson was one of nearly 300 people across New Zealand who had lifesaving and life-changing organ donations in 2025, after 60 people donated organs following their death. Organ Donation New Zealand donor co-ordination team leader Sue Garland said it enabled 190 organs to be donated, offering lifesaving transplants to recipients and far-reaching benefits to their families and wider communities. john.lewis@odt.co.nz
