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NFL player quit football to donate kidney to brother

Some things in life are far more important than sport. That’s the message from this heartwarming story out of the NFL.

Baltimore Ravens player Ma'ake Kemoeatu quit football back in 2012 so that he could donate a kidney to his younger brother, who had been suffering kidney problems since he was in his teens.

But the twist in the story lies in the fact that his brother he donated his kidney, to is also a former NFL player.

Chris Kemoeatu was forced onto an early retirement in 2011 when his ailing kidney wouldn’t allow him to play on any longer.

He spent seven seasons playing with the Pittsburgh Steelers, one of Baltimore’s biggest rivals on the field.

The two brothers held a press conference three weeks after the kidney transplant to announce that the surgery had been a success.

Chris playing for the Steelers. Source: Getty
Chris playing for the Steelers. Source: Getty

“He couldn't play anymore, and I didn't want to be in a position where he couldn't play but I'd keep playing,” 35-year-old Ma’ake told AP.

“As soon as my brother's health was at risk I wanted to stop everything.

“I'm the oldest of the seven kids, and it's my responsibility to take care of my younger brothers and sisters,” he said.

“If my younger siblings need blood, it'll be my blood. If they need a kidney, it'll have to be my kidney.”

Ma'ake after winning the 2012 Superbowl. Source: Getty
Ma'ake after winning the 2012 Superbowl. Source: Getty

Preparation for the transplant began over 18 months ago but was delayed when Chris found out he also needed a coronary bypass before the kidney operation could occur.

“I knew in my mind that he's fighting a kidney and now he has to have heart surgery," Ma'ake said.

“I said to him, it's going to be OK. I talked to him in football aspects. I said, 'all right, we're not going to get this in the first down, but we're fourth and long right now and we have to go deep. We'll make it through the first down – the heart surgery, to the end zone – the kidney transplant.”

Chris said the transplant was a “humbling'” experience.

“It definitely brought us closer as brothers”.

The surgeon who performed the transplant, Dr Stephen Bartlett from University of Maryland Medical Centre said Ma'ake's kidney was one-and-a-half times the size of a normal one.

“Man, when that thing came out I felt like somebody threw me a small football,” he said.

The two brothers are about halfway through the six-week recovery period and it’s so far, so good for the Kemoeatus.