RETIRED farmer Tony Hornby, 66, of Flookburgh, had a life-saving liver transplant three years ago after suffering from deterioratating health.

About 10 to 15 years ago I started having health problems.

My doctor picked up that my liver was working twice as hard as it should be because it had shrunk so much.

It was so small it was almost non-existent and I just felt tired all the time, I couldn’t eat and had no motivation for life.

When your liver deteriorates your blood becomes toxic and it makes you feel awful.

At one stage my liver function tests came back with a count of a certain chemical at 180 – a normal person’s should be 18.

Eventually my doctor referred me to St James’s Hospital in Leeds which has a specialist liver transplant unit for tests.

I was diagnosed with cryptogenic liver disease and I was told my chances of surviving the next year were poor.

I was put on the waiting list for a liver transplant in February 2007. Hearing that news felt like the end of the world.

For the next eight months we were just living on tenterhooks waiting for the call to go to Leeds. We had our bags packed and on us at all times because if we got the call that a donor organ was available we would have to be there in two hours.

But I was getting sicker and sicker and my family decided they wanted to investigate being ‘live donors’. You can give up to half of your liver to someone else, and you can still survive. In only a few weeks the liver – in both the donor and recipient – will have grown back to normal size.

My wife and daughters really wanted to find out if they could do this for me, but I said no, I just couldn’t let them risk their lives. Eventually my wife went down to the hospital to fill out the ‘live donor’ forms in October 2007 but the same evening we got a call from the hospital to say a liver was available.

It was like all our Christmasses and birthdays come at once, just wonderful news.

In the time we had been waiting our lives had changed so much. We had to give up the shop we used to run, my wife had depression, it was just a terrible time.

I went for the operation and 24 hours later I felt better. The staff were all fantastic and my symptoms disappeared because having a new liver cleans your blood.

We wrote to the donor family to say thank you, because we appreciated so much what they had done for us.

Even though they were suffering the loss of their relative they had been kind enough to donate their liver and give a complete stranger a chance at life.

We got a card back from them and it is one of the dearest and most treasured things we have. Words can’t describe how grateful we are to them.

It’s been nearly three years since I had the operation and I feel as good as new.

The doctors have said there’s no reason why I can’t live another 20 years and my family say that I am like a different person.

I am so much healthier and happier. I think the Gift of Life campaign is so important and me and my wife would like as many people as possible to sign up.

If you want to sign up to donate your organs, go to www.organdonation.nhs.uk or telephone 0300 1232323.