'All he wants to do is live and do the daily grind

Family face wait for second kidney transplant, writes Paige Oldfield

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WHEN Nattalie and Mike Molyneux tied the knot after six happy years together, the couple thought they'd finally found their fairy tale ending.

But tragedy was waiting for them just around the corner - one that would see Mike receive a "death sentence" in the form of a devastating diagnosis.

Mike, who lives in Burnage, was just a child when he was diagnosed with diabetes. The now 32-year-old had to take regular insulin injections to help manage his blood sugar levels.

However, in his 20s, complications arose with his condition and he learned he needed both kidney and pancreas transplants. The surgeries went ahead three months later. For the next six years, Mike carried on as normal. He welcomed the birth of daughter Phoebe and married the love of his life in May 2022. But, four months after the wedding, the retail worker was struck down what by appeared to be a cold - triggering the start of an unimaginable nightmare.

"All of a sudden Mike got really poorly," his wife Nattalie, 29, told the Manchester Evening News. "I remember him having a rough day. We thought he had caught a common cold, he's quite prone to them."

"He was completely unresponsive. He was arched over in bed. He had a fever of more than 40C; he was delirious. He was crying in pain asking for help."