A BRADFORD woman whose husband has saved eight people’s lives following his sudden death is urging people to talk about organ donation with their loved ones.

Karen Piotr, from Queensbury, has first-hand experience of how having that conversation can provide support when faced with the incredibly difficult decision.

Even if someone is registered as an organ donor, families are still asked to make the decision to consent to donation when someone dies.

And across the UK, more than 1,000 families decline to donate the organs of a loved one every year, even if their family member has consented to donate after death.

Karen’s journey began in May last year when her husband Mark, 49, died following a bleed on the brain.

But hope was to come from the most tragic of circumstances as Mark, who played for Bradford Northern colts in the 1980s and cricket at Jer Lane, Horton Bank Top, was on the organ donor register and Karen, 49, says she knew he would have wanted to help other people.

She said: “Sit down and talk to your family. At the end of the day, that was my ultimate decision as his next of kin. I could still have overruled that even though he was on the register.

“Have that conversation – know what your loved one would want.”

She said the fact he had gone on to help eight people was a huge source of pride and joy to her.

“There are eight people who are alive and well,” she said. “It’s not just those eight people – it’s their husbands, wives, kids, grandkids.

“I started to think there’s all people who are getting a special phone call. There are all these people, benefiting, doing well.”

Among those were a teenage boy who received Mark’s heart and Sheffield artist Pete McKee, who received his liver.

MORE TOP STORIES

Karen added: “You’re on the register, you’ve had the conversation with your loved ones and the positives and benefits of being able to help somebody else after you’ve gone – I think that speaks volumes.

“I had 31 years of Mark, his love and support. Now lots of other people are going to benefit from him.”

Karen is now working tirelessly to raise awareness. She is a trustee of the Donor Family Network and is also part of the Share Your Wishes campaign, which raises awareness about the importance of organ donation.

She also took part in Yorkshire’s Be a Hero campaign at Leeds’ Victoria Gate Shopping Centre, which encouraged passers-by to sit down and talk about their wishes with their loved ones.

In 2017-18, 318 people in Yorkshire and the Humber received a life-changing organ from a donor, while in the same time 34 people lost their lives while waiting for a transplant.

Dr Catherine Penrose said: “As doctors we approach the families of people who are coming to the end of their life and in a position to donate. In Yorkshire as a whole four out of ten families refuse permission to consent, so it’s vital to share your wishes with your loved ones.”