Nigerian music video director ThankGod Omori, popularly known as TG Omori, has revealed that he spent about ₦31 million on a kidney transplant after battling kidney failure and undergoing prolonged dialysis.
According to Ireporter Online, Omori made the disclosure during an interview on the Afropolitan podcast published on YouTube on Wednesday, where he opened up about his experience with kidney failure, dialysis and his eventual transplant.
The filmmaker explained that the financial burden of his treatment was enormous, noting that even earning ₦1 million monthly would not have been enough to cover the expenses involved in his care.
Omori said dialysis could cost between ₦50,000 and ₦70,000 per session at some hospitals, while treatment at a private facility could cost between ₦150,000 and ₦200,000 per session.
He added that patients undergoing dialysis may require as many as three sessions per week, with his treatment at a private facility sometimes costing about ₦500,000 weekly.
“I spent a lot on surgery. Dialysis costs ₦70k a day, but at an exclusive place, I sometimes had three sessions a week, costing ₦500k. A minimum-wage person wouldn’t cope. I waited a year for a transplant, which cost ₦31m,” Omori said.
He also estimated that the combined cost of dialysis and treatment over about a year while waiting for a transplant could reach millions of naira, excluding additional expenses such as medical tests, medication and possible complications.
Reflecting on his first transplant attempt, Omori said his brother donated one of his kidneys after the family spent months searching for a suitable donor.
However, he said the transplant failed after about nine months because doctors discovered that the donated kidney was not compatible with his body.
“My brother gave me his kidney after it took us nine months to find a donor. The doctor said my body wasn’t accepting it, that it didn’t match,” he said.
According to the music video director, doctors made further attempts to help his body accept the kidney, but the treatment was unsuccessful.
He said the experience was emotionally difficult, particularly because his brother had donated one of his kidneys and would have to continue living with only one kidney.
Omori further stressed the financial pressure associated with serious health conditions, saying a monthly income of ₦1 million would still not have been sufficient to meet his treatment expenses.
“So, automatically, if your salary is even one million naira a month, it can’t serve you,” he said.
The experience, he added, changed his perspective on money and the importance of having financial resources during major health challenges.
“Even though money can’t buy happiness, money can still buy some time,” Omori said.
Omori had publicly disclosed in 2024 that he underwent a kidney transplant, revealing at the time that his only brother had donated one of his kidneys to him. He also shared a photograph of himself receiving treatment in a hospital, accompanied by the caption, “Keep my spirit alive.”