From TribLive, By Luis Fábregas
Before she donated a kidney, friends and relatives questioned Amy Mowry's decision to put herself through risky surgery.
“A lot of people told me I was crazy,” said Mowry, 34, of Penn Township, Butler County. “They told me that I have children to worry about and that all these horrible things could happen.”
Doctors warned her about potential complications. And during surgery, Mowry suffered a torn colon, which she had been told had a less than 1 percent chance of happening. It slowed her recovery, but she has no regrets.
“I would totally do it again, even with the complication,” said Mowry, who donated a kidney to Rose Stafura of Cranberry, whom she met only a few weeks before the surgery.
About 6,000 people a year choose to donate an organ while alive, often to someone they know but sometimes to a stranger. Despite good intentions, some fail to fully understand the risks of the surgery, experts said.
The United Network for Organ Sharing, the nonprofit that runs the nation's organ transplant system, in February will put in place policy that calls for donors to undergo more thorough medical and psychosocial evaluation and screening. Experts worried that earlier guidelines lacked consistency.
“It's very important to understand, as best as we can, why an individual is coming forward to do this,” said Mary Amanda Dew, chairwoman of the UNOS living donor committee and a professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh. “Their motives are important because we don't want anyone to feel pressure or coerced to do this.”
In their eagerness to help someone, potential donors don't realize the complexity of the surgery, Dew said.
Some advocates say it's not possible to give donors comprehensive information about risks because there is no national database tracking the health of donors after surgery. UNOS tracks kidney donors for two years but does not plan to extend the requirement, a spokeswoman said.
“How can we tell them about risks if there's no database with long-term information?” said Dr. Lainie Ross, associate director of the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics at the University of Chicago. “We aren't following them long-term, and that's a real problem.”
‘POTENTIAL FOR HARM'
The new policy outlines components of a donor evaluation that includes screening for infectious diseases, cancers, diabetes and hypertension. It details reasons that someone could be ruled out as a donor, including mental illness or suspicion that the donor was pressured to undergo the surgery.
The guidelines apply to people who want to donate kidneys, livers, lungs, intestines or pancreases. Transplant centers must give donors data on the survival of recipients at the center performing the surgery. [Read more]
Gift of Life
From Lurgan Mail, Portadown, Northern Ireland, UK
A Donaghcloney man has received the ultimate gift in time for Christmas - the donation of a kidney from his friend.
Justin Weir, who suffers from the hereditary polycystic kidney disease, had been waiting for a suitable kidney since May 2011, when both of his organs had to be removed, and was relying on dialysis to stay alive.
For 13 and a half hours per week Justin was on dialysis.
On November 25 the wait was over for Justin and he gratefully received a kidney from his friend of 12 years from Portadown man Mark Boyce, who had kept it a secret from Justin that he was hoping to give him his kidney.
The first thing Justin knew of his friend’s generosity came in an out-of-the-blue text.
Justin, who is married to Sharon and has two sons - Jordan and Joshua - said: “Mark was talking about the great view from the 11th floor. At first I thought he was away in an hotel somewhere.
“But the renal unit is on the 11th floor at the City Hospital and then I thought there might be something wrong with him so I phoned him. All I could do was say, ‘Thank you’.”
Justin, a Theology student at Belfast Bible College, had already endured ‘false dawns’ - he had been called for transplant three times but on each occasion his blood had proved incompatible.
And, on the day of the operations, Justin insisted on being wheeled down to the recovery ward and making sure that Mark was okay before allowing the kidney to be transplanted.
Mark, who plays for Bourneview FC, said, “I could see Justin’s health deteriorating. Going out and doing normal things was becoming impossible for him and he was really starting to miss out on his kids growing up.
“I knew his wife Sharon had been tested to become a living donor and she was a match, but not a great one, so I started making a few enquiries of my own.”
Unusually for a non-relative, Mark’s kidney tissue was found to be a very good match for Justin’s.
Said Mark: “I didn’t want to tell him until I knew for sure because I didn’t want to get his hopes built up.”
Mark, a married father of two who is a committed Christian, said that once he had made up his mind to donate his kidney he had no second thoughts.
He said: “My wife and I prayed about it and we were both satisfied I was doing the right thing. You can live a full, normal, healthy life with one kidney.
“I think family and friends were obviously concerned but life is full of ‘what ifs’. What if I died at 95 with two perfectly healthy kidneys and hadn’t done anything to help?
“This will hopefully be the start of a new life for Justin.”
Justin has had a few minor setbacks since the operation but is now at home and taking his recovery one step at a time. Last week, his brother was also undergoing a transplant, with a kidney from his wife.
Meanwhile, Northern Ireland’s first Organ Donation Family Discussion Day took place last week, encouraging families to sit down with their loved ones and discuss organ donation.Even though someone is on the organ donor register, donation will only proceed if their family consents. This is often where the system fails, as many families aren’t aware of their relatives’ wishes.
From The Morning Call, Pottstown, PA, By Dan Sullivan
Co-worker gives gift like no other - a functioning kidney
Justin Weir, who suffers from the hereditary polycystic kidney disease, had been waiting for a suitable kidney since May 2011, when both of his organs had to be removed, and was relying on dialysis to stay alive.
For 13 and a half hours per week Justin was on dialysis.
On November 25 the wait was over for Justin and he gratefully received a kidney from his friend of 12 years from Portadown man Mark Boyce, who had kept it a secret from Justin that he was hoping to give him his kidney.
The first thing Justin knew of his friend’s generosity came in an out-of-the-blue text.
Justin, who is married to Sharon and has two sons - Jordan and Joshua - said: “Mark was talking about the great view from the 11th floor. At first I thought he was away in an hotel somewhere.
“But the renal unit is on the 11th floor at the City Hospital and then I thought there might be something wrong with him so I phoned him. All I could do was say, ‘Thank you’.”
Justin, a Theology student at Belfast Bible College, had already endured ‘false dawns’ - he had been called for transplant three times but on each occasion his blood had proved incompatible.
And, on the day of the operations, Justin insisted on being wheeled down to the recovery ward and making sure that Mark was okay before allowing the kidney to be transplanted.
Mark, who plays for Bourneview FC, said, “I could see Justin’s health deteriorating. Going out and doing normal things was becoming impossible for him and he was really starting to miss out on his kids growing up.
“I knew his wife Sharon had been tested to become a living donor and she was a match, but not a great one, so I started making a few enquiries of my own.”
Unusually for a non-relative, Mark’s kidney tissue was found to be a very good match for Justin’s.
Said Mark: “I didn’t want to tell him until I knew for sure because I didn’t want to get his hopes built up.”
Mark, a married father of two who is a committed Christian, said that once he had made up his mind to donate his kidney he had no second thoughts.
He said: “My wife and I prayed about it and we were both satisfied I was doing the right thing. You can live a full, normal, healthy life with one kidney.
“I think family and friends were obviously concerned but life is full of ‘what ifs’. What if I died at 95 with two perfectly healthy kidneys and hadn’t done anything to help?
“This will hopefully be the start of a new life for Justin.”
Justin has had a few minor setbacks since the operation but is now at home and taking his recovery one step at a time. Last week, his brother was also undergoing a transplant, with a kidney from his wife.
Meanwhile, Northern Ireland’s first Organ Donation Family Discussion Day took place last week, encouraging families to sit down with their loved ones and discuss organ donation.Even though someone is on the organ donor register, donation will only proceed if their family consents. This is often where the system fails, as many families aren’t aware of their relatives’ wishes.
Cherie Hessler of Pottstown doesn't need presents under her Christmas tree this year.
That's because Hessler recently received a gift like no other— a healthy functioning kidney from her longtime friend and coworker Connie Harris of Philadelphia.
For Lehigh Valley Health Network, the organ transplant that occurred on Nov. 5 took on even more meaning.
Hessler's new kidney was the network's 1,000th organ transplant since 1991.
LVHN marked the occasion, bringing Hessler and Harris together on Monday to share their story.
Hessler was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease last year at age 36. By November her kidneys had failed.
She was the same age her own mother was when diagnosed with the same disease.
Hessler's mother underwent two transplants, one performed in Philadelphia that failed after 18 days and put her back on a waiting list for another three years, and a second performed in the Lehigh Valley in 1995, which made her LVHN's 97th transplant patient. Hessler's mother died of complications related to a heart infection in 2009.
Harris, who works with Hessler at Paychex Inc. in Norristown, wanted to find a way to untether her friend from daily dialysis. [Read more]
Long-ago friend responds to email plea with life-saving gift
It's the season for giving, but David Shakespeare knows he's already received the gift of a lifetime.
"I was very confident that one way or the other, I was going to get a kidney," he said.
Watch NewsCenter 5's report
Just months ago, Shakespeare's kidney was failing from an inherited disease called polycystic kidney disease or PKD.
It affects about 600,000 people in the United States and has no cure. Shakespeare's mother and older brother both died from the disease.
"Basically what happens is that multiple cysts grow and crowd out the function of the kidney," he explained.
As Shakespeare's disease progressed, he realized he needed a transplant.
Patients have two options. They can wait to receive one from a deceased donor or find someone willing to live with one kidney so they can use the other.
"It's just kind of awkward," Shakespeare said about the process of asking. "I'm not comfortable using social media to begin with, but then going the next step further of being very candid and open about my need for a kidney, it feels kind of weird. But I realized this is what I've got to do."
David created a website and found students to hang posters on campuses.
He sent emails to everyone he knew, including one to Nancy Stockford, a college friend that he hadn't seen in years.
"There was just something about it that made me think, 'This is a thing that I could do,'" Stockford recalled. "And it just made so much sense."
But she didn't tell Shakespeare right away.
Instead, Stockford decided to wait to go through the entire evaluation process at Massachusetts General Hospital just in case she changed her mind. She didn't.
Doctors then confirmed her kidney was the perfect match for Shakespeare.
"They called to tell me that I'm a good candidate," she said. "And I could go ahead and let him know."
"I was just totally blown away," Shakespeare said, shaking his head. "I was sitting at my desk at work and almost speechless, I guess. And just incredibly grateful and happy."
"I mean it was a little abrupt," Stockford agreed. "But it was a fun call to make!" [Read more]
PKD Research
The report identifies the key trends shaping and driving the global Polycystic kidney disease Therapeutics market. The report also provides insights on the prevalent competitive landscape and the emerging players expected to significantly alter the market positioning of the current market leaders.
The industry analysis specialist, has released its new report, “Polycystic Kidney Disease (PKD) Therapeutics - Pipeline Assessment and Market Forecasts to 2019”. The report is an essential source of information and analysis on the global Polycystic kidney disease Therapeutics market. Most importantly, the report provides valuable insights on the pipeline products within the global Polycystic kidney disease Therapeutics sector. This report is built using data and information sourced from proprietary databases, primary and secondary research and in-house analysis by GlobalData’s team of industry experts.
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The report provides information on the key drivers and challenges of the Polycystic kidney disease Therapeutics market. Its scope includes -
- Annualized seven key markets (US, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, UK and Japan) Polycystic kidney disease Therapeutics market revenues data from 2006 to 2011, forecast for eight years to 2019.
- Pipeline analysis data providing a split across the different phases, mechanisms of action being developed and emerging trends by seven key markets. Pipeline candidates fall under major therapeutic classes.
- Analysis of the current and future competition in the seven key countries Polycystic kidney disease Therapeutics market.
- Insightful review of the key industry drivers, restraints and challenges. Each trend is independently researched to provide a qualitative analysis of its implications.
- Key topics covered include strategic competitor assessment, market characterization, unmet needs and the implications for the Polycystic kidney disease Therapeutics market.
- Analysis of key recent licensing and partnership agreements in Polycystic kidney disease Therapeutics market [Read more]
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