article_snippet: Tony Gartside had waited four years for a donor organ before Tony Gartside finally got the call to say a kidney and pancreas had become available.
article_snippet: The transplant window was so small that after putting the phone down at 3am, Tony Gartside was rushed from Tony Gartside home in Plymouth to Oxford for the operation.
article_snippet: But upon arriving, Tony Gartside was  told that the infected organs had come from the victim of a drugs overdose - and it would be two weeks before tests revealed if the infected organs were HIV free.
article_snippet: Tony Gartside, 40, had waited four years for a donor organ before Tony Gartside finally got the call to say a kidney had become available.
article_snippet: But Tony Gartside faced a dilemma after learning a donor organ could be infected with HIV .
article_snippet: Mr Gartside, 40, was born with type 1 diabetes, and Tony Gartside kidneys began to fail by the time Tony Gartside was 32.
article_snippet: Tony Gartside said: 'They showed me into a room and told me the infected organs had come from a death by drug overdose and asked if I still wanted to go ahead. '
article_snippet: The kidney transplant surgery took 10 hours and left Tony Gartside with 32 staples in Tony Gartside stomach.
article_snippet: After The kidney transplant surgery, Tony Gartside was sick for days, unable to even stand up straight, and was concerned about the risk of HIV.
article_snippet: Tony Gartside has since made a full recovery.
article_snippet: Tony Gartside said: 'My diabetes has completely changed - it's amazing - and even that doesn't describe how good I feel. '
article_snippet: Tony Gartside has now set up a support group for transplant patients - the Mayflower Support Group - which supports patients going through the transplant procedure.
highlights_snippet: Tony Gartside, 40, had waited 4 years for a donor kidney and pancreas .
  
highlights_snippet: There, doctors informed Tony Gartside a donor kidney and pancreas had died from a drug overdose .
  
highlights_snippet: Tony Gartside decided to take the gamble and accept the infected organs .
  