(Nov. 16) - A British Royal Marine flew home from Afghanistan to be a hero at home -- by donating a kidney to save his young son's life.
James King Jr. was born with a kidney condition. He was placed on a transplant list and meanwhile had to undergo dialysis three times a week.
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But while his father was overseas, 3-year-old James developed severer peritonitis, a condition where a membrane that lines the abdominal cavity and surrounds the organs in the abdomen becomes inflamed, the BBC said. He needed a transplant as soon as possible, and his father was considered the best chance for a match.
James King Sr., 28, flew home to Yeovil in Somerset, southwestern England. After tests confirmed he was indeed a match, the father donated a kidney to his son in an operation carried out in July. Four months later, both James Sr. and Jr. are doing well.
'James is really well," the young father told the
Daily Mail. "He is a lot less tired during the day. He has got more energy."
"I've got Daddy's kidney," said little James. "I feel much better now."
