A kidney for Jenna
Jenna is 31 years old and has been waiting for a kidney transplant for over 5 years. She does dialysis daily and cannot miss a day. This is her survival. She desperately needs a new kidney!
She has 100% antibodies, meaning finding a matching donor would be almost impossible. She would only match only 3 out of every 10,000 people.
A few days ago a friend, veteran Marine Gary Frey of Tucson, AZ, donated a kidney to a stranger through a swap program, so Jenna could get a kidney in return! His kidney was removed at UCLA Medical Center and flown to an anonymous recipient, and it's working great!
In the meantime, Jenna's transplant hospital began pre-treatments of Jenna's blood, in order to bring her antibody level down, so she might find a match. Her last lab result shows it is working!
Now here's the best news!! The swap program has now found a good match for Jenna! Her antibodies are low enough so they could actually test her blood with a potential donor (also anonymous) and the results are favorable! Treatments will continue, but she is scheduled to get a kidney soon! This is the good karma Gary's gift to a stranger has brought Jenna!
Funds are needed for:
- Gary was waiting with Jenna in the swap program nearly 5 years, and he has had health evaluations and status updates over the years, paying for his own travel, lodging, and losing time off of work. He is now getting some help from the National Living Donor Assistance Center, but it won't cover all of his out-of-pocket expenses.
- Jenna has insurance co-pays and deductible, and because of these treatments, before and after surgery she will have expenses to cover. She will also have anti-rejection drugs that are costly, and she will have to take them for the rest of her life. Her insurance pays for Gary's surgery, and Jenna's too, and it isn't 100% covered.
Please consider a donation, even $5 will help. If you cannot donate please share this request!
Thank you from Jenna and her family!
Please visit Jenna's facebook page: www.facebook.com/wantedkidneydonor
If you need a kidney or know someone who might, you need to know about the National Kidney Registry:
www.kidneyregistry.org
To read more about Living Donation go to UCLA Kidney Donor Info:
https://www.uclahealth.org/transplants/workfiles/adultkidney/donorInformation_packet-2016.pdf 