Have You Ever Considered Living Kidney Donation?
Mike is searching for a kidney donor, to help change his life and prevent eventually needing dialysis.
You can also find my Facebook kidney page here
Living Donation
Want to learn about living donation?
https://transplantvillage.org/giving-while-living/
Have questions or want to connect with someone about living donation?
dan@transplantvillage.org
First step, with NO COMMITMENT, for considering being a donor (Northwestern Medicine questionnaire):
https://www.nmlivingdonor.org
A Few Things About Living Donation
Filling out the Northwestern Medicine questionnaire does NOT involve a commitment. You have complete control whether to proceed with next steps, pause and take time to consider, or stop the process. The nurses and doctors are there with your health and interest as their priority. I have a separate team of nurses and doctors doing the same for me.
My insurance covers all medical costs for you.
People can live normal healthy lives with one kidney.
More information:
https://transplantvillage.org/giving-while-living/
Considering being a donor (Northwestern Medicine questionnaire):
https://www.nmlivingdonor.org
My Kidney Story
How did I get to this point?
Around 1989, I was diagnosed with Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD), which mutates normal cells into cyst cells that fill with fluid. 50% of people with PKD need dialysis or transplant by age 50. My transplant was at 53 in 2008, a donation from Kimberly. This picture is me after my surgery.
My main "hiccups" after this was realizing that the immune-suppressant meds resulted in viruses being easier to come down with, three different viruses over a year or two. With treatments, all of them were dealt with.
My Kidney Story
How long a donor kidney lasts varies, averaging about 15 years. Lab tests measure kidney function, and dropping below 20% qualifies starting the transplant process. From early 2020 to late 2022, my labs were between 21 and 26. Then in Nov. 2022, I dropped to 17 which meant that was the time to start this process.
This was delayed from late December to late March due to my first Covid infection. In April I will meet in person with nurses and doctors from Northwestern to start my evaluation, since I have to be healthy for the surgery, and get a series of scans and tests done.
More information:
https://transplantvillage.org/giving-while-living/
Considering being a donor (Northwestern Medicine questionnaire): https://www.nmlivingdonor.org
My Kidney Story
In 2008 the transplant seemed simple, when Kimberly became my living donor. This time, it looks like I will need more help. Two of the people who expressed interest in 2008 are not able to donate now. In the last couple months, two people have contacted Northwestern about possibly donating, but health background prevents this. (Donors can't have certain medical issues.)
I am in contact with the Transplant Village volunteer group via Northwestern, and the common path that results in finding a donor is sharing my story and the need with as many people as we can. This doesn't come naturally to me, but as they tell us, our family and friends will want to know when something serious like this has come up.
This is why my ask is to share this need with people that you know.
A Few Things About Transplant And Dialysis
Kidney transplants come from two sources - from a living donor or from someone who has died.
A kidney from a deceased donor on average lasts about half to 2/3 the time compared to a living donation.
A living-donor kidney lasts longer with a person who has not started dialysis. Once dialysis has been started, a kidney that is transplanted afterward will have a shorter life, compared to a transplant that is done before dialysis is needed.
While dialysis helps clean the blood like kidneys are intended to do, the result is not like having a healthy kidney, and dialysis can put a strain on the body, especially for older people.
Deceased-donor transplants typically require 5+ years on a waiting list due to the number of people in need. Each person on the list must first pass a series of medical tests and other criteria. Thousands of people get removed from the list each year due to changes in their health. In these cases their only life-long option is dialysis, unless their health can be improved or medical issues can be treated and cured. This means that providing a transplant to people sooner rather than later is critical to their long-term health.
Other Health Background
Like some of you, I have more than one medical condition to monitor. This picture is courtesy of my sister Karen, in May 2009 before my surgery. A couple years beforehand, I was diagnosed with recurring blood clots, including a pulmonary embolism. In May I started getting headaches, getting tests and scans to find a cause. It turned out I had pressure on the brain, pushing brain fluid out into the lower back part of my brain. This eventually affects conscious functions and then autonomic functions, like breathing. Four holes drilled in my head, four days in ICU with my head kept still, and the Northwestern head of neurosurgery calling me one of his "miracle patients" brought me thru and back home. While this was all unsettling enough, one part that I didn't expect to be difficult was losing 3-4 days of memory. My memory goes from being at home, leaving for an MRI, to waking up in ICU after the surgery with a tube down my throat and unable to move. At least this is long in the past.
A Little About Me
Kimberly and I have our 40th anniversary coming up this year! I am retired at the moment as I setup this site, though I will be back at Caremark as a contractor for a couple months, starting soon.
I have been part of Willow Creek Community Church since what we call the "movie theater days", where I started serving after the last service taking down the Sunday school (Promiseland) tables and supplies. These days, for the last 24 years I have helped in a computer ministry as one of our volunteer leaders. The team refurbishes computer donations and gives them to people and organizations in need, in our local area plus 42 countries. In 2022 we gave about 220 computers, though in a past year it was over 300. This is where I get to spend my Saturday mornings, and with my role on the team, some of my other days too.
My hope for this summer is to get back on a bicycle, having bought a new-to-me Bianchi recently. You can usually find me reading some sci-fi books (just finished Asimov short stories, starting C.S. Lewis' space trilogy) and going for walks outside.