Woman who received Ireland’s first kidney-pancreas transplant dies aged 68 as tributes pour for ‘inspiring’ patient

Funeral details have been released

IRELAND’S first recipient of a simultaneous kidney–pancreas transplant has passed away, with tributes pouring in for the fierce woman.

Mairead Ward died suddenly on December 8, aged 68, in Killulagh, Co Westmeath.

She received the then-never-before-seen operation on New Year’s Eve, 1991.

Mairead was 34 at the time of the procedure, which was performed by pioneering surgeon Dr David Hickey and his team at Beaumont Hospital in Dublin.

The surgery broke ground and launched a new era for transplant medicine in Ireland.

And Mairead went on to become one of the longest surviving kidney–pancreas transplant recipients in the world.

The funeral details for the pioneering woman have been released as tributes have been paid.

The service will be held at St Livinius Church, Killulagh, today, December 12 at 11am and she will be buried in the adjoining cemetery.

Dr Hickey, who performed the surgery, has since retired after a career during which he performed well over 1,500 kidney transplants and carried out 138 of those kidney–pancreas operations.

He led tributes to Mairead ahead of his attendance at her funeral.

He said: “Mairead had a remarkable sense of fairness and justice. I remember she was living in Dublin in Gardiner Street at the time.

“One day, she came into the clinic and asked why there was no pancreas-transplant programme in Ireland, noting that a friend of hers had to travel to Wales for the operation

“She challenged us and was very insistent, and rightly so, to provide in Ireland what patients were forced to seek abroad.

“Her courage helped change the direction of transplantation in this country.

“Without people like Mairead, advances don’t happen.”

He continued: “At that time in Ireland, when only deceased donors under the age of 30 were eligible for pancreas transplants.

“From the moment Mairead’s donor was identified to the transport of the organ to Dublin and the completion of the operation at Beaumont Hospital, the entire process took approximately 24 hours.

‘QUIET STRENGTH’

“Ireland’s first transplant coordinator, Phyllis Cunningham, was there throughout, ensuring everything ran smoothly. I was assisted by Malachy Gleeson.

“The operation was finally completed close to midnight on New Year’s Eve 1991, almost welcoming the New Year.”

The Irish Kidney Association paid tribute to Mairead’s “quiet strength” in a heartfelt statement.

They said: “Thanks to her groundbreaking transplant operation, Mairead gained nearly 34 years of renewed health, free from dialysis, and no longer dependent on daily insulin injections.

“Because of patients like Mairead, Ireland’s pancreas-transplant programme grew and over the decades many more individuals have benefited.

‘REMARKABLE LEGACY’

“Less than 200 kidney–pancreas transplants have taken place in Ireland to date.

“We offer our deepest condolences to Mairead’s husband Joe, her cousins, and all who loved her.

“In celebrating her life, we honour a woman whose resilience and quiet strength helped transform transplantation in Ireland and whose memory will continue to inspire.”

A family friend described her as “very kind, happy, and always smiling.”

And they said she will leave behind a “remarkable legacy of resilience and hope for transplant patients everywhere”.

Mairead was born in Rickardstown, Co. Westmeath, on February 3, 1957 to her parents, Seamus and Molly, and had one sister, Ann. All three predeceased her.

STRONG STORY

Mairead attended national school in Johnstown before she went to Loreto College in Mullingar.

She began her career as a clerical assistant in the Old Courthouse offices in Delvin in the late 1970s, and later worked in the County Council offices in Mullingar.

She moved to Dublin and worked there as her health was declining.

She remained in Dublin where she met her future husband, Joe Whalen, who she married in 2013.

The pair moved to her hometown of Rickardstown, where they were surrounded by family, friends, and neighbours.