A WOMAN who made medical history after having all her major organs transplanted started her dream job at Abergavenny’s Nevill Hall Hospital yesterday.

Allison John, 32, was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis when she was just six weeks old and over the past 13 years she has undergone operations to transplant her heart, lungs kidneys and liver.

Her experiences with the many doctors, nurses and surgeons over the years made her determined to help other people fighting for their lives.

She finally graduated from Cardiff University in July and started working as a doctor at Nevill Hall yesterday.

Miss John said: “I never thought this day would finally come. It’s such a huge milestone for me. My life has been a bit of a rollercoaster and it’s taken a long time to get here, but I got here in the end.”

She was diagnosed with liver failure at the age of 14 and received a new liver 16-months later, just as doctors told her she had just three days to live.

Miss John started a neuroscience degree at Cardiff University in October 1996, only to be told in March 1997 she was suffering from lung failure.

A match was found in August 1997 and doctors replaced both her lungs and heart, during a six-hour operation.

Miss John enjoyed good health until April 2005 when she was studying medicine at Cardiff and she was told the medication she was taking to stop her body rejecting the new organs had caused kidney damage.

Her father David, 61, was found to be a match, and she became the first person to have all her major organs transplanted after a kidney transplant in December 2006.

Miss John was conscious throughout the operation, after having an epidural, as doctors said her body was too fragile to endure a general anaesthetic.

She said: “At the moment I feel I'm in the best shape physically that I've ever been and I'm so excited about the future.

“The things I've lived through have taught me to treasure the little things in life and to appreciate the here and now."