In May 2018, Dale Sutherland was told he had eight months to live without a liver transplant.

The news was “shocking,” he said, because his prognosis had rapidly declined.

But it also sparked a decision to be healthier to have the best chance of surviving a possible surgery.

“When they said you only have eight months I thought, well I’m not going to spend it working,” said the Ancaster man.

So Dale, who is now 64, retired from his job as a forensic scientist and geochemist. He started playing more tennis — an obsession of his, says his wife Liz. And he joined a local gym to build strength.

His healthier lifestyle had a bigger impact than he could have imagined. His prognosis improved so much that doctors now tell him he has about five years to live.

Dale still needs a liver, but his spot on the transplant list plummeted. The sicker you are, the higher your spot on the list.

“It’s a catch-22,” he said.

The chances of Dale getting a liver from someone who has died is nil because of a long wait list. He needs a live donor.

“The transport team told us it’s BYOD — bring your own donor,” Liz said, adding that there simply are not enough deceased donors to meet the need.

Last year, there were 223 liver transplants from deceased donors and 59 from living donors in Ontario, according to the Trillium Gift of Life. There are 286 people on the wait list.

Dale has cirrhosis of the liver caused by NASH (non-alcoholic steatohepatitis). His health problems began about four and a half years ago with a gallbladder attack.

For a time, they thought it might be cancer. Then just before gallbladder surgery, he was told it was his liver. Initially doctors said he had 10 to 12 years.

Liz has done everything from posting an advertisement on Kijiji to she and her friends driving around with stickers on their cars, looking for potential donors.

Dale needs a live donor who is type A or O blood and is under 60. After filling out paperwork, potential donors go for two days of compatibility testing at University Health Network in Toronto, where the transplant would take place.

Most liver donors are in hospital for five to 10 days and should expect to be off work for eight to 10 weeks after the surgery.

One woman who volunteered from the Kijiji ad made it to the second day of testing before she was disqualified after doctors found a small mass on her lungs. The testing ended up saving her life.

Liz said the biggest misconception people have is not understanding that you can be a living donor. In the surgery, a portion of the liver is removed and the liver regenerates itself.

It was Dale’s personal trainer at Heron Creek Yoga & Fitness, Mark Young, who reached out to The Spectator. Young said Dale has been “unbelievably consistent” with his dedication to workouts.

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“You could set your clock by him,” he said, adding that if Dale says he’ll be there Monday at noon, the only way he would ever miss that is if he’s in hospital.

Dale goes to the gym twice a week. He plays tennis three to four times a week.

“When I took on the responsibility of agreeing to help him to improve his health ... it was not enough just to make somebody stronger knowing full well I’m not doing all I can,” Young said.

A heart condition disqualified Young from being tested, but he said he reached out to The Spectator because he wants to help Dale to find a donor.

Dale has met several people also waiting for transplants, including Donna Singer-Wood, a friend from tennis who has also been trying to raise awareness.

Dale and Liz married 11 years ago after meeting through the Aldershot Tennis Club, where they’re both members. There was a mixed tournament, and neither had a partner, so they agreed to play together.

“I don’t think we won, but we won in a different way,” Dale said.

Liz says she faces “what anybody with a sick husband would go through.”

But Dale adds: “What she’s not saying is that she’s given up this part of her life.”

They should be travelling and enjoying retirement, but instead Dale spends most of his time on the couch. After going to the gym or playing tennis, these days Dale often needs to sleep for hours afterwards.

They know a liver donation is a big thing to ask of someone, but they have to ask.

Anyone interested in potentially donating can call Liz at 905-577-2524.