Fresh calls are being made for more kidney donors in the face of a chronic shortage of organs for those on waiting lists for transplants.
More than 400 people in New Zealand are on the deceased donor list, including Hawke's Bay's Colin Simpson who about 10 years ago was diagnosed with polycystic kidneys.
He was told at the time he would be likely to require dialysis in another five years, but with lifestyle and dietary changes he extended that until recently when he had an operation to remove one of his kidneys.
Now running on one kidney, he started dialysis about five months ago, which he administers three days a week for five hours a day, and he said he was going to increase that to four days a week.
The Hawke's Bay Scrap Metal manager said he carried out his dialysis at home rather than at the hospital so he could still work, but it took up a large chunk of his life.
"It takes about an hour to set up the machine and get the needles sorted out, and then I am on it for five hours and it takes another hour to get off the machine.
"I often have little energy but I have to keep working - if you don't work you start to get grumpy."
Mr Simpson needs a new kidney, and wants to raise awareness of the shortage of live kidney donations to support the many sufferers.
"You hear about cancer and everything else but you don't hear about patients on dialysis, and there's so many of them."
His wife had already been ruled out as a suitable donor, and his daughter was prepared to donate but had to overcome her own health and weight issues first.
"It's very hard I find to go to people and tell them you need a kidney - but I'm getting to the stage where I have to get serious about it."
Mr Simpson's doctors had told him that if he did not have a kidney transplant within the next year and a half, it would no longer be a viable option for him, so he feels like the clock is ticking.
"Hopefully something like this will inspire people to look into it, not just for me but for all the others out there in the same position."
He said what kept him going was the nurses in the renal clinic who provided great comfort.
Hawke's Bay DHB living kidney donor co-ordinator Merryn Jones said that in 2015 there were 147 kidney transplants, 73 from deceased donations and 74 live donor transplants.
"We need more living donors to help give people with end-stage renal failure their quality of life back," she said.
Although people may register as organ donors on their driver's licence, they often assumed those organs would be available for distribution upon their death. However there were limited circumstances whereby this could happen.
"Kidneys, like the heart, rely on a good blood flow, and as such can only be procured from a person who has died while they are on life support.
"The gold standard is to have a live transplant - we have several months to do the testing to confirm that person is the best match for the recipient, and surgery can be planned so the kidney is not out of the body for too long."
She said that giving a kidney was giving the gift of life.
"We desperately need more donors - people are incredibly grateful when someone offers - it's very hard to ask for a kidney."
She said testing for donor suitability was free, and the transformation when a transplant was completed was almost immediate, improving that person's quality of life and extending their life.
To find out more about donating a kidney contact Merryn.Jones@hawkesbaydhb.govt.nz