‘Thought I was going to die’: Sam Vanderpump recalls terrifying moment his organs shut down
He's been given five years left to live unless he gets a transplant
Vanderpump Villa and Made in Chelsea star Sam Vanderpump has opened up about his terrifying health battle, with doctors saying he only has five years to live unless he gets an organ transplant.
He opened up about the moment he was admitted into hospital in an interview with The Sepsis Trust.
Whilst Sam was diagnosed with a genetic liver and kidney condition when he was a child, it had never caused him any health issues. At the start of December last year, Sam fell ill with the flu and had to spent a couple of days in hospital after a severe asthma attack.
View this post on Instagram
But even after going home, Sam still felt like something was wrong, recalling: “For the next ten days, I was complaining of back pain and flu-like symptoms I just couldn’t shake. It was very peculiar. I kept saying it was crazy how I couldn’t kick this flu.”
After shopping with his girlfriend he asked if they could go home because he felt so unwell, and from there is condition worsened rapidly. He explained: “I was taking loads of codeine for the back pain, and by Monday morning I wasn’t making any sense. Alice thought I’d overdosed.”
When Sam arrived at hospital in the ambulance, his bloodwork revealed that he was going into complete liver and kidney failure and he was quickly rushed into the resuscitation unit.
He was on oxygen for the first few days of recovering and described it as the “scariest moment” of his life, telling MailOnline: “I thought I was going to die. I didn’t think my body could cope and that was the scariest thing. It was terrifying. I didn’t think I was going to survive or see the outside of the hospital again.”
Sam also developed jaundice, causing his skin and whites of his eyes to turn yellow and he also had to have a catheter fitted. It took Sam months to physically recover, and doctors have since told Sam that he only has five years to live unless he manages to get a liver transplant.
View this post on Instagram
Sam told co-stars Ollie Locke, who appeared alongside him on Vanderpump Villa, and Tabitha: “There is no hope of my liver getting better and he said I wouldn’t be having this call with you if I thought you could make it through the next four or five years. They’re sending me for liver transplant assessment, so yeah.”
Sam explained that for now he’s feeling healthy but isn’t sure what the future will hold, explaining: “The way I look at it is I’m healthy now, hopefully I will remain healthy all the way up until I’ll get a call and go in for surgery and then I wake up and I’ll be healthier.”
For all the latest reality TV cast member news, scandals, gossip and updates – like Reality Shrine on Facebook.