Hezi Merom, 83, of Neve Monson, was treated for dialysis in recent years. • After the procedure, he said: "Feeling divine, I feel good and hope to be released soon."

• Cheated. "Divine feeling" 

  Photo: 

  Yossi Seliger

It's never too late to have a kidney transplant: Ezekiel (Hezi) Merom (83) from Neve Monosson made history this week, when he became the oldest person in Israel to undergo kidney transplant surgery at Sheba Hospital. 

For the past five years, Merom was treated for dialysis following renal failure and waited impatiently for the day he was told he had a kidney. Now that he no longer needs dialysis, Merom is excited to feel relief: "Feeling divine. I have had a kidney. I feel good and hope to be released soon in my home in good health."

Professor Eitan Moore, director of the Sheba Transplant Center, explains that what struck the scales was Merom's good health and mental health. According to Professor Moore, "This patient really impressed me. He came himself, physically active, doing fitness and swimming. He has a good sense of humor and his excellent cognitive state." At the same time, a kidney donation came from an 80-year-old man who died of trauma, not a disease, and whose kidney function was good.

"The 80's and 83's add up to 163, which seems to me an excellent one," laughs Professor Moore, but Marcin, when asked about the ethical question of whether it would be better to transplant the kidney into a younger person, who may have many more years of life: "The ethical debate is an argument The nephrologists have an "age barrier," but there's no reason to think of age as a factor. "

It should be noted that since 2012, the age limit for organ donation has been raised, and organ donation is possible in Israel from the deceased until the age of 80, subject to their health status.