A man has jumped out of a plane to thank the NHS for his new kidney.

Scott Cather said his life was transformed by a transplant which gave him his health back after spending years “counting down to kidney failure”.

Now he has taken the plunge in a charity skydive to present a cheque for £1657.09 to the Transplant Service at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital.

“It really was a no-brainer,” said the 56-year-old.

“The whole team did so much for me and I wanted to do something to properly thank them – everyone who had done so much to care for me and give me this new lease of life.

“I’d always wanted to do a sky-dive, so after the operation I said to my wife: ‘That’s what I’m going to do’.”

Glasgow Times: Scott handed a cheque over to the NHSScott handed a cheque over to the NHS (Image: Sourced)

Scott did his jump at Skydive St Andrews, Glenrothes, at the end of July – barely seven months after his life-saving surgery – and it was everything he had imagined.

“I went with my two stepdaughters and one of my stepdaughters’ boyfriends,” he said.

“We got there good and early so we were first in the queue. The weather was good on the day so when we took the plunge conditions were great.

“It was one of the best things I’ve ever done, and the fact I was raising money for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde made it even more special.”

Scott, from the village of Auchinloch in North Lanarkshire, had been on dialysis for many months before his operation and, though he tried to stay positive, the process was taking its toll on him and his family.

“Quite simply, it felt like I was counting down to kidney failure,” he said.

“I’d spent seven months on dialysis at Stobhill in Glasgow, and then my wife Diane was trained in how to administer the procedure, so we did that at home for another eight months.

“We tried to stay positive but, strangely, the week before my transplant, it was like I’d had enough and I said to my wife: ‘I really need a new kidney now’.

“It was like someone heard me.”

The call about Scott’s new kidney came at 8am on December 3rd 2022.

“It came totally out of the blue,” he said. “They said we’ve got a kidney, and it’s a really good match.

“We were supposed to be looking after our grandson Harry that day so, as well as being really emotional and excited, we needed to make arrangements at short notice.

“I was in the QEUH by 11am, had the tests I needed and had the surgery that day.

“The surgery itself was successful and, once my recovery was properly under way, that was when I decided I wanted to do something to properly thank the whole team at the QEUH.”