Help Matt Fight Kidney Failure

Almost thirty years ago, while living in Arizona for a short time, Matt contracted coccidioidomycosis (valley fever), an infection caused by the fungus Coccidioides. Doctors removed 2/3 of one of his lungs, and used a type of chemo to stop the fungus from growing. He was only 19.

A little less than ten years later, before Matt was 30 years old, he became sick with pneumonia. Doctors found that he was in congestive heart failure, and that his kidneys were failing. They believe the chemo used to treat the coccidioidomycosis is what destroyed his kidneys.

Although two family members stepped up to try to donate their kidney to Matt, both of these attempts fell short due to other issues.

Matt was living on dialysis, and dealing with multiple other health issues. This is when Liz, then fiancé/now wife, stepped up and decided she was going to donate her kidney to the donor list. Doing this would move Matt up on the list, securing him a matching kidney much faster. Instead, they found out that Liz was actually a match for Matt, and he has had a healthy life with the help of Liz's kidney for the last 15 years.

Link to their story on CNN: Fiance Kidney Donor

Since the transplant surgery, Liz and Matt have married and had a daughter (9) named Clara. They're very close-knit, have an extremely healthy lifestyle, and take nothing for granted. Liz and Matt have worked very hard and have overcome all of the adversities placed in their path.

Matt woke up with a lot of pain one morning this past February. He was transported to the OSU Hospital in Columbus where doctors discovered that the transplanted kidney had an aneurysm. They are still unsure what caused the aneurysm, and this is very rare in transplanted kidneys.

Doctor's spent three hours trying to save the kidney, but were ultimately unable to do so. After being blessed with 15 healthy years, Matt underwent surgery to have the kidney removed. He is currently recovering, and is working on getting back on the transplant waitlist.

Facing another battle with dialysis and an undetermined wait time on the transplant waitlist, Matt is working on his health and getting strong enough for a second transplant. During this time, he and Liz will be dealing with medical and prescription expenses, time out of work, and various other costs that are necessary to get Matt as healthy as possible as quickly as possible.

For those who don't know me -- my name is Megan, and I'm Liz's step-sister.

I've known Liz since before she met Matt, and have seen their relationship and family grow over the years. The battle they have faced is more than most of us will ever know, and they have handled their situation with grace, patience, and love. They are truly an inspiration, and their story is awe-inspiring.

Knowing the challenges Liz and Matt have faced and overcome, and now seeing them having to go through this for a second time, is truly crushing. I have started this GoFundMe in an effort to alleviate some of the burdens they are facing, and make their load a little less cumbersome.

Any donation is welcomed!