Sarah Spina-MatthewsNorth West
The mother of a five-year-old boy said she had been told to “say goodbye” to her son nine times before his life was saved by a triple organ transplant.
Vicky Ogg, from Chorley, said her son Kacey fell ill when he was eight weeks old. He was diagnosed with short bowel syndrome, an incurable disease caused by a birth defect, and Ms Ogg was told he would not survive the night.
But he was saved by three major surgeries in which most of his small intestine was removed. He then had to be fed through a tube – a process that damaged his liver so much that he needed a transplant as well as a new small intestine and large colon.
“Kacey became so poorly, he was dying every day,” said Ms Ogg.
She said Kacey was added to the organ transplant list but they knew a donor would be difficult to find given his size.
The family also did not know if Kacey would survive the surgery given how complicated it was.
“Throughout it all Kacey has just had a big smile on his face and just got through with so much strength,” Ms Ogg said.
She said they finally received the call that a suitable donor for Kacey had been found in May 2024 and he was rushed to Birmingham for surgery.
“It felt like winning every lottery in the world all at once,” she said on finding out that the surgery had been successful.
Kacey is now able to eat and he started school in September.
He had previously been unable to go to nursery as getting any illness would have resulted in him being taken off the organ transplant list.
Kacey also took part in the 2025 British Transplant Games in Oxford in the summer, winning a gold medal in archery and a bronze medal in sprint.
Ms Ogg said her whole family had been supported throughout Kacey’s illness by local children’s hospice Derian House in Chorley.
“I didn’t know what to expect,” said Ms Ogg.
“I had a horrible idea of what a hospice is but I finally visited and felt the warmth and magic when you walk in and from then on the hospice has been an amazing hub of support for our whole family.
“I don’t know what all of us families would do without Derian House.
“We would be reaching out for support that just isn’t there.”
