A loving brother lost almost 240 pounds to qualify for a donation scheme to help save his sister’s life after she was diagnosed with kidney failure.
Matthew Flanagan, 24, weighed 437 pounds as a teenager and once spent nearly $8,000 on takeout in a year.
But when he was told he was not suitable to donate a kidney to his sister Emma, he swung into action to lose weight, so he applied for a “kidney sharing” scheme.
The scheme allows him to donate his organ to anyone who is a match, which gives Emma a better chance of finding a match herself.
But potential donors who are obese face an increased risk of surgical complications, and obesity can affect residual kidney function in the long term.
As such, Matthew had to lose a significant amount of weight before being accepted, which he now has.
Now 204 pounds, he’s enrolled in the scheme and also bought his dream car, a vintage Mini Cooper, which he couldn’t get behind the wheel of before.
Matthew, who has been named World Slimmer of the Year after losing 233kg, said: “I had already started losing weight when we got the news that my sister needed a transplant.
“[But] it was a big turning point for me.
“At the time my sister was in kidney failure and I was on my way to an early grave – it was too much for my family to handle, so I’m glad he was there for me.
“From then on I knew what I had to do. Not only did I need to make changes for my long-term health, but for Emma as well.
“Her situation gave me the drive and determination to lose weight so I could help her get a new kidney.”
Matthew piled on the pounds by surviving on a diet of “processed foods and lots of sugar” – admitting he once spent over $8,000 on takeout in a year.
The doctor told her she would be “lucky to make it to the end of the year” when she was just 19.
After Emma’s devastating diagnosis, he and his family were told they were not viable candidates for a transplant as they did not have the same type of tissue as her.
Matthew, who works for an aviation company in Lymm, Cheshire, joined Slimming World to learn how to improve his eating habits.
He said: “Hearing that from my doctor really hit home. I started to realize that everything you do has a consequence and that I’m taking myself down a dark path.
“I met a friend who looked great and told me he had lost weight with Slimming World.
“I lost another 145 pounds with the help of my Slimming World group – 233 pounds in total.
“I’ve found such a great support network in my group – it really feels like a big family.”
Slim Matthew now says he loves walking and has climbed Snowdon and Scafell and found love.
He added: “Before, I would sit in my room playing video games with the blinds closed, now I can’t wait to get up and go for a walk.
“I walk about four miles on my lunch break and some days I’ll go for a walk again with Dad when I get home.
“I have so many things I would like to do now that I could only dream of before. I also felt more confident in myself, which meant I put myself out there a bit more.
“I’ve since met my girlfriend Anna, who’s also a member of Slimming World, so we’re good at keeping each other on track.
“When I look back at what my life was like before I lost weight, I just don’t recognize that version of myself anymore.
“Several years later and almost 224 pounds lighter, I’ve finally been accepted into UKLSS, so later this year I’ll likely be a donor to someone who needs a kidney.
“This will make such a huge difference to my sister’s chances of getting a kidney herself. To be able to help my sister in this way means everything to me.”
Matthew says he always found it difficult to eat healthy as he had been a carer for his mother since the age of six and would eat highly processed and high sugar foods.
He often skipped breakfast and spent the day scoffing snacks between meals and then eating snacks for dinner.
Since losing weight, he bought a Racing Green Mini Cooper SPI called the Victory, named after his grandfather, Victor.
He added: “Me and Grandad always went to car shows together and I always wanted to sit in the classic Mini Coopers but I just wouldn’t get into them.
“A week before I bought the Victory we went to a show and I finally got behind the wheel.
“My grandfather has helped me cover the costs of the repairs and is delighted with the progress I have made, so it was only right to name it in his honour.
“I enjoy driving Victory and reflecting on how far I’ve come. I am the same person, but now I have opened a new chapter of my life.”
“I’m looking forward to living life to the fullest with my loved ones by my side – and if that’s not a win, I don’t know what is!”
Matthew’s stats:
Height: 5ft 11in/177cm
Starting weight: 31 lbs 3 / 437 lbs / 198 kg
Current weight: 14 8lbs/204lbs/93kg
Total weight loss: 16 9lbs/233lbs/105kg
Weight loss with slimming world: 10 5 lbs / 145 lbs / 65 kg
Waist size before: 58 inches/147 cm
Waist size now: 36 inches/91 cm
Slimming World entry date: September 2020
Diet before:
Breakfast: None
Mid-morning: Dessert or a bag of chips
Lunch: sandwich or a light meal such as pie and chips
Dinner: Baked frozen meals such as chicken strips and fries or a takeaway meal
Snacks: Tub of ice cream, bags of sweets, shared bags of chips
Diet now:
Breakfast: Homemade omelet with lean bacon, onion and grated cheese or scrambled eggs on wholemeal toast
Lunch: Leftovers from the night before e.g. Bolognese slimming or world-style chili, taken to work and heated
Dinner: Lean steak served with home-made sweet potato fries with low-calorie cooking spray served with and salad
Evening: Yoghurt with meringue nest and berries, two Hi-Fi Slimming World bars, small packet of potatoes or a chocolate bar
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