Husband saves wife when kidney matches

BAYTOWN, Texas – It’s a real life fairy tale ending.

"If I have to give you my lung, I'll give you my lung. If I have to give you my heart, which you already have, I'll give you my heart," kidney transplant patient Josie Maldonado said.

Josie Maldonado has had diabetes for most of her life, but never acted like it. 

"I thought it was going to go away. I thought it was just a dream, a nightmare," Maldonado said.

She didn't take her medicine, or practice a healthy diet.

"It started going through my kidneys, it started affecting my vision," Maldonado said.

That took a toll on her body.

"He said my kidneys are only working at seven percent," Maldonado said.

She went into kidney failure about a year ago and has been at home on dialysis since, looking for a donor.

"My brothers, my kids, my dad," Maldonado said.

No one fit the bill, but all along, she never knew her perfect match was sitting right next to her.

"Your husband is your donor, that doesn't happen very often," Maldonado said.

Doctors said that it's extremely rare, and in this case, the transplant will save Josie's life.

"The survival is just like someone basically having cancer. Their survival, we know their length of survival is shortened by the fact that now they're on dialysis," nephrologist doctor, Abdul Abdellatif, said.

The true knight in shining armor said he's just being a good husband.

"I want to go because she's my wife, and I want to spend the rest of my life with her," Rudy Maldonado said.

If you would like to donate to the family, please click link: www.gofundme.com

To find out more information on becoming a donor yourself, visit: organdonor.gov