Teenager with four kidneys wants to become organ donor

A teenage girl who recently discovered she has four kidneys is hoping to be able to donate two of them to patients desperately in need of a transplant.

Laura Moon, 18, from Whinmoor, Leeds, is one of a tiny number of people to have four of the organs growing naturally. She only became aware of her unusual anatomy six months ago after undergoing an ultrasound scan to investigate stomach pains following a car crash.



'I realised that the doctor scanning me hadn't said anything for a long time. I thought he was going to give me bad news. But then he said: "You've got four kidneys." He measured them and I have two which are 14cm and two which are 9cm.'

Consultant urological surgeon Dr Robyn Webber, of Fife Acute Hospitals, said many extra kidneys are fully functional, meaning Laura should be able to donate. He added: "It is a relatively rare condition. Ordinarily they are left alone unless the patient is suffering any problems. But Laura will be able to manage perfectly well with two so assuming they are working correctly there is no reason why she shouldn't donate them."