DonateLife Week: Life-changing gift for transplant recipient

Thanks to a life-saving liver transplant later that year, Mr Grubert and his wife, Alena, were able to welcome their second child to the world just four weeks ago.

Mr Grubert said he was diagnosed with autoimmune disease primary sclerosing cholangitis when he was about 17-years-old.

“Basically, that causes scarring in the ducts in the liver, and over time that scarring blocked the liver and stopped it functioning,” he said.

“It had just been a slow deterioration with the last few years being particularly difficult, to the point where I needed to go on the transplant list.

“I’d spoken to my doctor, and they gave me about 12 months. I knew myself, with how I was feeling, that I obviously was very unwell.

“Knowing that death might be the outcome was very hard for all of us.”

Mr Grubert said he eventually received the phone call saying there was a match in the middle of the night.

“It was a bit surreal … it all happened in a bit of a flurry,” he said.

RELATED STORIES:

The family flew to Melbourne for the procedure. Mr Grubert had the new liver transplanted about 24 hours after the call.

They returned to Tasmanian in September, and Mr Grubert returned to work before Christmas.

“Since then, everything has been fine. Now it’s all about what we can do, it’s really, really amazing,” he said.

Mr Grubert said the biggest differences after the surgery were his higher energy levels, and no longer looking “minion yellow”.

“I’d go to work, I’d go to bed, I’d get up for tea, and then I’d go back to bed again,” he said.

“Now, I’m back to work as normal, back out and about as normal, out fishing, and out in the bush, and chasing after our daughter, Ella. It’s certainly very special to be here for all of that.”

Mr Grubert said it was amazing how much receiving this second chance had changed his perspective.

“A couple of weeks ago we were in the Princess Theatre, and my wife was nursing [newborn baby Liam], and we were watching Ella perform onstage in the dancing competitions. It’s just lovely to be able to celebrate that and be there.”

Mr Grubert said organ and tissue donation was not only life-saving, but life-changing.

“You can never say thank you enough,” he said.

“You hope there’s some kind of joy that a donor family could take away, with the fact that every recipient makes the most of what the gift of getting an organ can be.”