Veteran singer Alamgir has been battling polycystic kidney disease for years and is ready to take the next step towards relief from the pain he has long suffered.
Alamgir is about to leave for Atlanta, where his kidneys will be removed as a preliminary procedure for his kidney transplant next year.
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The surgery is expected to take place in mid-June at Atlanta's Emory Hospital, which is "one of the best in America," said Alamgir to Dawn.com.
"Once I arrive, I'll undergo lots of tests, so my doctors are sure that I'll be able to tolerate the long surgery," he added.
Typically, a third kidney can be fitted in without the removal of the existing kidneys, but Alamgir's are so enlarged that there is no room for the third, he said. He added to Dawn.com that he finds it hard to breathe due to this reason.
It will take Alamgir five to six months to heal after the surgery, after which he will return to Pakistan to wait out the interval before his transplant.
Responding to a question about his treatment funding, Alamgir said that the government hasn't fully made good on its promise to donate for his kidney transplant. "They had promised me 50 lakhs, but I only got 20. It's been three years since 2012 (when I received the first donation) and there has been no follow-up. I managed to raise the remaining money through my own hard work."
