Couples tell of kidney swap joy

The landmark transplants are the first to be performed on living people who do not know each other.

Roma Horrell, 57, from Cambridgeshire, and a man from Lothian, Scotland, received kidneys from each other's partners in the first ever paired kidney swap.

Their own partners had hoped to donate their kidneys but were not a suitable match.

Mrs Horrell received a kidney from the Scottish man's wife. Just a few hours later, the Scot underwent an operation to receive a kidney from Mrs Horrell's husband Peter, 55.

The Scottish couple do not wish to be named.

Until now, living donor transplants have occurred only between relatives or people with a close emotional relationship, such as couples living together.

But a change in the rules last year led the Human Tissue Authority (HTA) to allow strangers to donate to each other.

Experts hope up to 200 more kidney patients a year could benefit from this kind of transplant in the future. In the first few years, about 50 extra patients are expected to benefit.

Transplants on a second set of couples are already planned, with a third in the pipeline.