TRAVEL fan Liam Green is enjoying seeing some of the world’s most famous sights thanks to a cornea transplant.

Liam, 30, from Wilmslow, is backing a call by NHS Blood and Transplant for more people to donate their corneas.

The organisation’s eye banks are 21 per cent below the level needed to supply hospitals, and Liam is supporting World Sight Day.

Liam had a cornea transplant in his left eye in 2015 for keratoconus.

Liam, who also raps and makes vlogs, had worked for 10 years as a cleaner before the transplant.

Since the surgery he has been backpacking around Thailand, and travelled to New York, which he is due to visit again in the next few weeks.

He also started a new job working with epileptic adults in the community.

“Thanks to the transplant I was able to travel the world, and I love my new job,” said Liam.

“I can’t thank my donor and their family enough. They are legends.

“Forget footballers and rock stars. The donor is my hero. The gift of sight has been life-changing.”

As a teenager Liam noticed something was amiss when he could see shadows on the edge of his vision when he looked into the garden from his home.

He knew he needed an eye test, but did not worry too much until he went for a driving lesson aged 17, and could not read the car number plates at the required distance.

Tests revealed he had keratoconus, a degenerative eye condition that causes the cornea to thin, and the eye to bulge.

Liam said his eye bulge became so noticeable that he would show it off as a party trick, and was known as ‘bullet eye’.

He had to wear rigid contact lenses and glasses as his vision deteriorated.

He said: “Looking through my left eye was like looking at a painting that had been left in the rain.”

He relied on the sight on his right eye but faced everyday problems such as missing areas to clean at work, bumping into obstacles while out of the house, and feeling restricted about what he could do or where he could go.

After the transplant, his eyes were initially so sensitive he had to wear two pairs of sunglasses.

He said: “It was two or three weeks before I was properly getting on with life, and the transplant has completely changed my life for the better.

“It’s like I was given a second chance. I can see beautiful things like my nephew and niece, I could start a new job, and just start living a new life. I can’t thank my donor enough. I am so grateful.”

NHS Blood and Transplant is calling on more people to agree to donate their sight to meet the growing demand for corneas in the ageing population.

As of September 29, there were 278 corneas in its eye banks in Manchester and Bristol. It aims to have 350 corneas in these banks at any one time to supply to hospitals for patients.

NHS Blood and Transplant needs 70 donations a week to meet the demand for sight saving transplants but there is a regular shortfall in donations.

Almost anyone can donate their eyes for cornea transplants when they die, including people with some cancers.

Helen Gillan, general manager for Tissue and Eye Services at NHSBT, said: “Our eye banks are well below the level we’d like to see.

“You can help us by saying yes to cornea donation. Almost anyone can donate their sight. Please support sight donation and help patients see what they can currently only imagine.”

For more details visit organdonation.nhs.uk

To see Liam’s vlogs visit Youtube.com/phatstuffvlogs