Support John’s Fight – From One Transplant to the Next
Donation protected
The medical bills are continuing to pile up for John and his family as he remains in need of a kidney transplant. They could really use your support during this challenging time. Many of you know John’s story—but if not, here it is in his own words:
As most of you know, I have cystic fibrosis and I had a double lung transplant in 2015 after a major cardiac arrest in 2014. Since that second chance at life, I’ve been blessed to continue my career in healthcare and, more importantly, get married and start a family of my own. As Rachel and I continue to raise our twin boys, we recently received some unfortunate news. While the lung transplant has given me all of these great things, taking the transplant medications every day for the past 10 years has taken a toll on my kidneys. In January of this year, I had a routine check-up at Cleveland Clinic. While my testing showed my lungs are doing great, my blood work for my kidneys was alarming. My creatinine level was over 5, and I was admitted into the hospital. I was discharged in a couple of days only to be readmitted a few weeks later for the same issue. It became clear there was not going to be an easy fix. Cleveland Clinic doctors told me I need a kidney transplant. The transplant is needed quickly as my kidneys are functioning at near 10%. At my age, long-term dialysis is not a practical option. Ironically, the transplant medications I take have brought me full circle to needing another transplant. As they say, my kidneys are “checking out.” This past week, I was in Cleveland for preliminary testing. I only have a couple more tests to do prior to being listed. To my surprise, being listed only provides the opportunity to receive a kidney from a deceased donor. The current wait for that list is 2-6 years, time I don’t have.
After talking with nephrology, urology, and the surgeon, they believe it is in my best interest to pursue a living donor as they would provide me and my family with the best long-term outcome. This requires me to find someone with a matching blood type (A- or O-) with no history of kidney disease or diabetes. If anyone would be interested in donating or has any questions about donating, please don’t hesitate to contact me in any way possible. It would mean the world to me and to my family if you could share this post to help spread the word and share my story.
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