My friend got a kidney!

[PamNY]

He's been waiting for 3.5 years. Got the call Sunday night; reported to the hospital Monday morning. As far as I know he's doing well.

Organ donation is so amazing. No matter how well I understand it intellectually, I almost can't get my mind around having that go on inside someone I know.

[Possegal]

My sister in law is on her second kidney and doing amazingly! Two of their 3 kids will need one someday too. As the bumper sticker says - don't take your organs to heaven, heaven knows we need them here.

A good friend of mine's mother had a liver transplant in December. Even though the doctors kept saying that her liver wasn't in too bad of shape, she matched a local donor and moved up the list. In the end, the surgeon came out and told us the liver was WAAAAY worse than the blood parameters had let on, and then the histopathology of the old liver found that she had a very early hepatocellular carcinoma in there, too small for scan detection. What a miracle that transplant was!

Congrats to your friend!

[Tri Girl]

Congrats to your friend! That's fantastic news!

I'm an organ donor, because I won't need them when I'm dead, but it's a double edged sword. You know someone's family is going through the worst heartache of their life while another family is going through tremendous joy at getting a second chance at life. When my father passed, they were able to salvage some of his organs, and while I was devastated at losing him so young, the thought of him giving someone else life made me so happy.

If they can't use my organs, I want my body to be given to a med school. Let some young punks carve me up in hopes of them learning how to be a good doctor.

[aka_kim]

Great news for your friend!

I'll put in a plug for living donation too, see http://www.kidney.org to learn more.

Anyone remember the very funny "We Are the World" style song from 30 Rock called Kidney Now! with Elvis Costello, Sheryl Crow, and others?

[Zen]

Liver transplants work with living donors too.

[aka_kim]

So true, Zen.

I'm just the Linkinator today - http://www.livingdonorsonline.org/liver/liver.htm has some great info.

[spindizzy]

Yay for your friend!

I have "organ donor" engraved on my RoadID & my family is aware of my wishes.

[badger]

glad to hear that for your friend! hope all goes well.

My friend's brother got 2 kidneys - one from his dad that he rejected (much to the family's jokes). He's since passed away from another cause, but he did well with his second kidney for close to 20 years.

[Possegal]

My friend's brother got 2 kidneys - one from his dad that he rejected (much to the family's jokes).

My sister-in-law's first transplant was from her sister, and then she started to reject that kidney. THey were able to stop the rejection at one point with an experimental use of a chemotherapy drug. But it was enough to get her back on the list, yet she was still doing pretty well and not back on dialysis. When she got the call that they had another kidney for her, her first reaction was "I feel fine, who would undergo a surgery when they feel fine", to which her sister laughed and said - excuse me? Oooops.

The other kidney was a match on all six HLAs (her sister's was not a 6-pt match) and it was a local boy on life-support from a car accident. Some UK transplant surgeons came through with her surgeon and met with her, when she told them those details, her surgeon asked her if she realized she had just won the transplant equivalent of the lottery, 6-pt match and no transport of the organ.

Admittedly, it was very emotional for our family though, as we knew who the donor was because it was all over the local news.

Not looking forward to watching my niece and nephew go through this down the road. I hope the field moves forward in leaps and bounds for them!

[GLC1968]

Congrats to your friend, I hope he does well!

I used to hang out with a woman who worked on a transplant team when I lived in Boston. When she was 'on call' she was REALLY on call and often had to go at the drop of a hat. I always thought that was such an amazing job though!

I also know a woman who donated one of her kidneys to her husband. They were 'the perfect match' in more ways than one!

[sgtiger]

That's great news! And I'm sending good vibes that all goes well.

[snapdragen]

I worked with a woman that was on the list for a new kidney. She got the call one afternoon at work, we were all so excited for her. Once she had her transplant, she decided she felt so good, she didn't want to waste any more time at work, so she retired!

ETA -- good vibes and best wishes to your friend Pam!

[badger]

The other kidney was a match on all six HLAs (her sister's was not a 6-pt match) and it was a local boy on life-support from a car accident.

my friend's brother's second kidney came from a little girl who lost her life in a car accident, too

I know donations are kept anonymous but somehow they found out who the family was and they kept in touch.

[PamNY]

Here's the gift we are getting for my friend.

[Flybye]

Here's the gift we are getting for my friend.

That is just one freaking fantastic gift