Mom Gives Her Child Life--A Second Time

The following article is from the UAB News website:

This year, Mother’s Day has extra special meaning for Jennifer McCombs and her 15-year-old son, Chase Waters. Jennifer has given Chase life again — this time in the form of a life-saving kidney transplant.

“Chase was born with something called posterior urethra valve, and there was a blockage we learned about when I was pregnant that damaged his kidneys in utero,” says McCombs, 42, of Hoover. “Chase’s doctors told us that he would need a kidney transplant one day; we just didn’t know at the time when that day would be.”

One day came about a year ago when it became evident medication no longer could keep Chase's kidneys working; he needed a transplant. Jennifer was ecstatic when tests showed her kidney was a match for Chase.

“For 14 years I hoped and prayed I would be the one to give him a kidney,” McCombs says. “I just really wanted to be the one to do it.”

Chase has had few limitations during the past years. He is an accomplished catcher for his high-school freshman baseball team and has even been scouted by some pro teams. He wanted to play until time for his transplant, but his baseball career was put on hold after the first game this spring. His condition deteriorated to the point he was too exhausted to play.

“This year it’s been hard to practice, because the next day I wasn’t able to get out of bed because I was so fatigued,” Chase says.

UAB transplant surgeons Steve Bynon and Michael Hanaway performed Chase’s transplant April 21. Jennifer’s left kidney was removed laproscopically and transplanted into Chase. The procedure, which took most of the day, was a success. Jennifer was discharged the next day and Chase about a week later.

Chase is recovering, and Jennifer is celebrating this Mother’s Day knowing her son has a new lease on life. She’s also looking forward to his eventual return to the baseball diamond.

“I cannot wait to see him go out there and play and feel good,” she says. “I’ve watched him play and feel bad, and that’s been hard, but I cannot wait to get out there and scream for him.”

And Chase — he is grateful for the sacrifice his mother made for him.
“It amazes me that she would give up one of her organs so that I can live and live a better life, and it makes me happy that I have a mom like that,” he says.

Donnie Wahlberg Tweet Helps Fan Find a Kidney Donor

The information below is from the Associated Press.

Donnie Wahlberg's Twitter skills have helped find a kidney for an ailing fan from Nashville, Tenn.

One of the New Kids on the Block singer's 183,000 followers on Twitter tweeted a link to a blog about a fan who desperately needed a kidney transplant. Donnie retweeted the plea in December and asked his fans to help Bobbette Miller.

The Boston Herald reports the request prompted a slew of calls to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and one of the callers was a match. Bobbette now is scheduled for a June transplant.

Donnie calls the success a team effort, saying it proves how valuable Twitter can be.

March Patient of the Month: Paul Adkins

In 2001, after years of struggling for every breath, Paul received a lifesaving lung transplant. His doctor compared the transplant to a marriage, saying "when you find the perfect mate, it's for life." Paul's new lung has survived a heart attack, quadruple bypass, back surgery and pneumonia.

But now Paul's health is failing, and he was recently diagnosed with focal segmental glomerulosclerosis, an illness that causes scar tissue to build up in the kidneys. His immune system is heavily suppressed from his essential anti-rejection medications, eliminating dialysis as a treatment option. Doctors say a kidney transplant is critical for his survival.

Paul considers himself blessed to have two perfect marriages: Shirley, his wife of 45 years, and his lung transplant. His children and grandchildren want nothing more than to see him healthy again. The shortage of organ donors has created difficult odds for Paul to find a match, but his granddaughter, Sarah, is being evaluated to donate one of her kidneys for a paired kidney exchange program. She's not a compatible match for Paul, but she'll donate her kidney to another patient in exchange for someone else donating to save her grandfather's life. His family hopes this will give Paul a better chance of finding a donor match soon.

To read more about Paul, please visit his NFT web page.

Happy new birthday to you!

We are so happy for our patients who recently received their lifesaving transplants! Many people are unaware of the lifetime of expenses related to transplants and the essential medications and follow-up care. NFT is dedicated to helping these patients continue to raise funds so they can return to a normal life without worrying about the expenses.

Kerry Baumann (lung/liver/pancreas) at Duke Univ. Medical Center

Ellen Broner (stem cell) at Univ. of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

John Cusimano (kidney) at Mayo Clinic in Florida

Anthony Hollaway (double-lung) at Univ. of Texas in San Antonio

Lolita Lee (kidney) at Medical University of South Carolina

Scott McCoy (heart) at Emory Transplant Center

Miguel Nunez (liver) at Tampa General Hospital

Clara Woolley (liver) at Univ. of Arkansas for Medical Sciences

Brother, can you spare a kidney?

About 80% of the people on the transplant waiting list need a new kidney. Living kidney donors are true heroes, and we need more of them. Last year, we had the privilege of meeting Cindi Love, a living donor who saved NFT patient Tom Wirt's life. Tom and Cindi had never met and lived in different areas of the country. They found each other on matchingdonors.com, and Cindi gave Tom the best Valentine's gift imaginable: a brand-new kidney.

We featured Cindi and Tom in our spring 2010 newsletter. To read more about their inspirational story, click here.

Upcoming Workshops from the Living Kidney Donor Network

The Living Kidney Donor Network (LKDN) is offering you the opportunity to attend their informative educational workshop that will help you pursue a successful living kidney transplant.

The workshop is not your traditional classroom lecture - but an interactive program offering personal attention, interactions and practice time for the participants. Everyone quickly realizes that they have a lot in common and can learn from one another.

This workshop educates people who need, or will need a kidney transplant so they understand the facts about living donation and will have the skills to effectively communicate the information to others. The benefits of a kidney from a living donor are indisputable. If you are apprehensive about talking to others about your situation, or would like to learn more about pursuing a living donor kidney transplant, the LKDN Workshop is for you!

Three LKDN Workshops have been scheduled for:

February 22, 2011 – March 21, 2011 – April 26, 2011
6:00 – 8:30 PM

155 N. Wacker Dr. Chicago
(Northeast corner of Wacker Dr. and Randolph St.)
2nd Floor Conference Center

FREE Parking will be provided

Class size is limited - so please register by calling 312-473-3772 or e-mailing: workshop@LKDN.org.

For more information, please visit LKDN.org.

Altruistic Donors Boost Hopes for Those Waiting for Kidney Transplant

The following article is from the Daily Herald.

Their stories amaze.

Brenda Bogue, a 44-year-old physical therapist and marathon runner who lives in Schaumburg, was inspired to donate one of her kidneys by a story she read last summer in the Daily Herald.

It was about a man in St. Charles who donated a kidney, inspired by the example of his daughter, who had signed up as an organ donor before she died at age 17 in a car accident.

Before reading the story, Bogue hadn’t realized being a living donor was an option.

“To me, it was kind of like, why wouldn’t I?” Bogue said as she was preparing to return to work a week after the laparoscopic surgery Dec. 30. She’s also signed up to run another marathon in September.

While the decision to give up a kidney might seem overwhelming, people who have done it say it really isn’t that hard and it’s incredibly rewarding.

Bogue’s donation completed the missing link in a set of matched pairs that allowed three people, including Donald Fradkin, 76, of Deerfield, and Adriane Price, 43, of Wadsworth, to get new kidneys.

For donor Scott Kalkis, 28, a casual conversation at a company Christmas party led to a donation.

Kalkis, who manages the Firestone Complete Auto Care at the Fox Valley Shopping Center in Aurora, ran into the manager of another Firestone store at the party in 2009 and thought he looked unwell.

“I didn’t know how sick he was, but you could tell he wasn’t right.”

Carlos Cerda, 57, who now manages the Batavia store, told Kalkis he needed a kidney transplant, but he thought one of his two daughters would be able to supply it.

Kalkis volunteered to step in if needed. “It was actually real easy,” he said of making his promise.

Months later, with minor health issues making his daughters ineligible as donors, Cerda recalled Kalkis’ comment and, with trepidation, asked if he was serious.

Kalkis, of Plainfield, said he was. It wasn’t until Cerda, of Lockport, brought over a stack of paperwork, though, that he realized the enormity of his promise. He didn’t waiver.

To read the full article, click here.

NFT Patients Who Received Transplants in January

We are so happy for our patients who received their lifesaving transplants last month! Many people are unaware of the lifetime of expenses related to transplants and the essential medications and follow-up care. NFT is dedicated to helping these patients continue to raise funds so they can return to a normal life without worrying about the expenses.

• Sofia Lumi Bentos (liver) at Jackson Memorial Hospital
• Jeffrey Hanna (lung) at Mayo Clinic in Florida
• Pamela Locke (kidney) at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
• Lauran Martin (pancreas) at Duke University Medical Center
• Barbara Priester (liver) at Cleveland Clinic
• Grover Strickland (kidney) at UAB Hospital
• Joseph Tomarazzo (liver) at Florida Hospital
  

Successful Event Raises More than $17,000!

NFT patient Kenny Cox is a regular on the Florida music scene. When his friends and community members heard of his need for a kidney transplant, they wanted to help. Volunteers held "Blow Out to Go Out," last month in Kenny's honor.

On November 20, the Rock for Hair and Nails salon donated proceeds from hair and nail appointments while several bands, including the Kapo Kings and Chasing Sparrows, played throughout the area. When the day was over, more than $17,000 had been raised in honor of Kenny!



To see more photos from this event, visit NFT on Facebook.

Successful Chicken Barbecue Fundraiser for Transplant Patient

NFT patient Barbara Igney suffers from polycystic kidney disease (PKD), a genetic condition that replaces healthy kidney tissue with cysts, causing the kidneys to stop functioning properly. Doctors say a kidney transplant is her only hope for a second chance at life.

A kidney transplant costs approximately $250,000, and that's only the beginning. Even with health coverage, she faces considerable medical expenses related to her transplant. For the rest of her life, she will need follow-up care and daily anti-rejection medications. The cost of post-transplant medications can range from $2,000 to $5,000 per month--and they are as critical to her survival as the transplant itself.

Volunteers held a chicken barbecue fundraiser in her honor last week to assist with her medical expenses. Even though it was a cold day, they raised more than $1,700!

December Patient of the Month: Patrice Martin

In 2009, Patrice was diagnosed with chronic renal failure, which also afflicts her father and aunt. Soon after her diagnosis, she began enduring regular dialysis treatments, which take a toll on her quality of life. Doctors have said a kidney transplant is critical to her survival. Although she has not found a donor match yet, several family members and friends are being tested to see if they could donate a kidney to save Patrice's life.

This devoted mother of two is determined to beat this disease so she can spend many more years with her children. Patrice says her children are her motivation to stay positive on a daily basis. After receiving her transplant, she looks forward to going back to work, taking walks and traveling. Because her illness leaves her so exhausted, her activities are greatly limited. More than anything, Patrice is anxious to have energy and resume her normal activities. But she needs your help.

To learn more about Patrice or to make a donation in her honor, please visit her web bio.

NFT Patients Who Received Transplants in November

We are so happy for our patients who received their transplants last month, and we wish them all the best during recovery!

• Terri deBruin (lung) at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center


• Joe Erickson (heart) at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center


• Dee Hueske (liver) at Memorial Hermann Transplant Center


• Sara Medina (kidney) at Methodist Transplant Center


• JingLung Situ (heart) at UCLA Medical Center


• Robert L. Webb, Sr. (double-lung) at Cleveland Clinic

November Patient of the Month: Jonathan Amarillo

When Jonathan's mother, Yuberky, was pregnant, she won a 4D ultrasound in a contest. During that ultrasound, she learned her little boy was suffering from polycystic kidney disease (PKD). Doctors said Jonathan wouldn't survive because his kidneys were so enlarged that his lungs couldn't develop properly. Jonathan has had both kidneys removed and requires dialysis treatments at home for more than 10 hours each day. Doctors have said a kidney transplant is critical to his survival.

Rather than arranging play dates and playing silly games with her baby boy, single mom Yuberky must spend her time scheduling doctors' visits and dialysis treatments for little Jonathan. They are facing a difficult challenge, but Yuberky is determined to be there for her son and see him overcome this health battle.

A kidney transplant costs approximately $250,000. And that's only the beginning. Even with insurance, Jonathan's family faces significant medical expenses related to his transplant.

To read more of little Jonathan's story or to make a donation to NFT in his honor, please visit his web bio.

NFT Patients Who Received Transplants in October

We are thrilled for the NFT patients who received their transplants last month, and we wish them all the best during recovery!

• Kevin Bolin (double-lung) at Duke University Medical Center

• Doris Coley (liver) at Nazih Zuhdi Transplant Institute


• Chris Coverdale (kidney) at Shands at the University of Florida


• Tony Feggins (kidney) at Emory Transplant Center


• John Schmitz (liver) at Mayo Clinic in Rochester

As you may already know, NFT provides services to transplant candidates awaiting organ and/or tissue transplants, as well as patients who have already received their transplants.
To learn more about NFT and our transplant fundraising services, visit the FAQ page on our website.

NFT Patients Who Received Transplants in September

We are so happy for our patients who received lifesaving transplants last month!

• Ramsey Brown (heart) at Shands at the University of Florida
• Victor Delgado (kidney) at Emory Transplant Center
• David Fraser (liver) Shands at the University of Florida
• Dustin Garver (lung) at Duke University Medical Center
• Yvonne Gonzales (stem cell) at Baylor University Medical Center
• Kevin Jackson (liver) at Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center
• Madee Leombruno (kidney) at Allegheny General Hospital
• Lonnie Leonard (liver) at Integris Nazih Zuhdi Transplant Institute
• Melisha Nolen (bone marrow) at Vanderbilt University Medical Center
• George Renz (kidney) at California Pacific Medical Center

Florida Musician Awaits Kidney Transplant

NFT patient Kenny Cox needs a lifesaving kidney transplant. His son will donate one of his kidneys to save his father's life. Below is a video Kenny's fundraising volunteers have created on his behalf, featuring a song written and performed by Kenny.

Living Kidney Donation Webinar

KidneyLink is hosting “Learning About Living Kidney Donation,” a webinar hosted by Harvey Mysel of the Living Kidney Donors Network on Tuesday, October 12 at 8 p.m. (ET). The webinar will teach people how to raise awareness about living kidney donation and how to tell others about their need for a kidney transplant.

Medical professionals say the only way to increase kidney transplants is to increase the number of kidneys available. Living kidney donation is a key way to help this occur. Many people, however, don’t know a lot about living kidney donations or are afraid to ask someone for a kidney.

To learn more about the upcoming webinar or to register to attend, visit the KidneyLink website.

Former University of Memphis Basketball Player Needs Your Help

For four years, Willie Kemp gave his heart and soul on the basketball court for the University of Memphis. Tiger fans and the city of Memphis rallied around him, cheering him on night after night at the FedEx Forum. Now, Willie needs your help.

Willie's mother, Maxine Kemp, is battling polycystic kidney disease (PKD), and doctors have said a kidney transplant is critical to her survival.

A mom to three sons--Jermaine, Willie and Quintavius--she remains strong and determined to overcome this battle for them. She loves to spend time with her boys and was Willie's biggest fan when he played basketball at the University of Memphis. More than anything, she dreams of the day when she won't be in constant pain. Maxine is passionate about giving back to the community and helping others in need, but now she must rely on the kindness of others.

A kidney transplant costs approximately $250,000. And that's only the beginning. Even with health insurance, Maxine faces significant medical expenses related to her transplant. For the rest of her life, she will need follow-up care and daily anti-rejection medications. The cost of post-transplant medications can range from $2,000 to $5,000 per month--and they are as critical to her survival as the transplant itself.

In fact, before Maxine can even be added to the transplant waiting list, she needs to raise $2,000 for a hospital deposit.

Tiger fans, now is your time to help! Visit the NFT website to read more about Maxine and make a donation to NFT in her honor.

NFT Patients Who Received Transplants in June

Everyone at NFT is so excited for our patients who received lifesaving transplants last month!

• John Bafford (heart) at Medical University of South Carolina


• Mandi Batson (double-lung) at Duke University Medical Center


• Ronald Davis (kidney) at Loma Linda University Medical Center


• Vicki Hancock (bone marrow) at Emory Transplant Center


• Trevis Hockaday (heart) at University of North Carolina Hospital


• Amanda Keys (heart) at Children's Hospital of Michigan

Bethel Park Family Rallies to Raise Money for Kidney Transplant

This article is from the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.

Although she is facing a life-threatening health disorder, Madee Leombruno considers herself blessed.

Mrs. Leombruno, 40, was diagnosed with IgA nephropathy in 2006 after a routine doctor's checkup. The disorder affects how her kidney functions and its ability to get rid of harmful antibodies.

She needs a kidney transplant to save her life.

"You know, I never felt any pain at all," said Mrs. Leombruno, a Sewickley native and former physical therapist's aide. "My doctor referred me to a nephrologist, and I was told that there was a very high level of creatinine in my kidneys. I was in shock."

Creatinine is a substance that is filtered out of the body via the kidney. If it is not, kidney damage can occur.

For a long time, Mrs. Leombruno has taken a large cocktail of drugs geared to bringing the creatinine level in her kidneys down. When that did not work, she began costly dialysis procedures in January.

In the fall, her husband, Tony, of Bethel Park, lost his job. He has since found work as an engineer outside Tampa, Fla., where they both now live.

On Sept. 7, she will be back in the area for a kidney transplant at Allegheny General Hospital. Her sister-in-law, Deidre, 35, will donate a kidney, and other family members are doing whatever it takes to raise the money needed for the surgery.

"I can't tell you how overwhelmed I am with all this help," Mrs. Leombruno said from her home in Brandon, Fla. "I want to say 'thank you,' but I feel that it is not enough."

The first fundraiser this summer will be a car wash Saturday beginning at 9 a.m. at Hillcrest Christian Academy at 2500 Bethel Church Road in Bethel Park. No price has been set but donations are welcome.

Other fundraisers are scheduled throughout the summer, Mrs. Leombruno said.

"I just feel so much love from everyone involved," she said.

A kidney transplant can cost up to $250,000, according to Mandy Scherer, director of public relations for the National Foundation for Transplants. Costs of post-transplant medications, which are critical to the patient's survival, can range from $2,000 to $5,000 per month.

Mrs. Leombruno looks forward to having a normal life again.

"Having to go to dialysis three days a week kind of prevents me from having a full-time job," she said. "I cannot wait to be able to work and volunteer again."

Those who would like to make a donation to Mrs. Leombruno's cause can mail a tax-deductible gift to the NFT Florida Kidney Fund, 5350 Poplar Ave., Suite 430, Memphis, TN 38119. Write "in honor of Madee Leombruno" in the memo line of the check. Donations also can be made online at www.transplants.org. Click on "Patients We Help" to direct a contribution to Mrs. Leombruno.

For more information, contact Mrs. Leombruno's mother-in-law, Anita Leombruno, at 412-758-9148 or anitaphil@verizon.net.