By Sarah Harker

AFTER years spent living in a world of blurred shapes and images, John Sullivan can finally see the light after a groundbreaking cornea transplant.

John, aged 37, first started having problems with his sight when he was 11.

What seemed to be short sightedness could not be corrected with glasses and, aged 16, he was diagnosed with keratoconus, a rare condition of the eye, which means conical cornea.

Doctors prescribed John with specialist contact lenses as a temporary solution.

But the move turned out to be a massive mistake. A side effect of wearing the lenses meant they left his corneas scarred and his sight worsened.

John, of Old Hall, said: “A doctor once explained the condition to me in simple terms. It’s like a car headlight where the bulb is fine but the glass in front is the wrong shape.

“No one knew at the time the damage the lenses were doing. I wore them for 16 years and it was only when I developed an abscess on my cornea that we realised the damage they had been doing. With the lenses I was able to drive, but without them I couldn’t even make out the top line of the eye chart.

“So I went from that back to the bad old days and was told I couldn’t wear them again.”

With his eyesight gradually deteriorating and left with only 40 per cent vision, John, who works at the Royal Mail Distribution Centre in Warrington, opted for a cornea transplant in each eye. In June 2002 he had his first transplant and his vision was clear almost immediately.

More recently, he received his second transplant, and he says life has never been as good.

John says: “I can now make out the last line on the chart and it really is like winning the lottery. I’ve got my independence back and it’s like a whole new world.

“I’m so grateful to the donor for giving me the gift of sight. It’s given me my life back.”

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