
When John went into kidney failure, not one of the other 247 deputy's at his Ohio sheriff's department knew that he had kidney disease. The moment he was hoping would never come, finally did. He was going to need a liver transplant.
At the UPMC Kidney and Pancreas Transplant Program, we strive to make a positive difference in each person we treat.
During a stressful time full of decisions and next steps, we hope that the success stories of previous patients will help you focus on the impact that a transplant can have on your quality of life.
Note: These patients' treatment and results may not be representative of all similar cases.
One night, after a long day of taking care of patients, Adnan woke up with severe abdominal pain. He was admitted to UPMC Passavant where doctors found three clots in the artery connected to his small intestine. He was immediately rushed into emergency surgery. He was successfully treated for that condition, but the medicine he took for his heart was damaging his kidneys. He needed a kidney transplant.
It had been nearly 10 years since George McClure received a kidney transplant, until he started experiencing symptoms again. He was diagnosed with nephritis and was in need of another kidney transplant to survive. George and his wife, Christine, discovered that she was not a blood group match. With 96,000 people on the waiting list for a kidney transplant, their only option was the UPMC Live Donor Exchange program.
When Chuck Lutz learned that he was in kidney failure and a living donor could save his life, he was hesitant and afraid to put anyone in his family at risk. However, his younger sister had other plans and decided to become his living donor. Virgina and Chuck underwent a living-donor kidney transplant at the UPMC Hamot Kidney Transplant Program and are both doing great.
Marisa Warford never imagined that her friendship with Shelley Trondle would end up saving her husband’s life. When Reggie, Marisa’s husband, needed a life-saving kidney transplant, Shelley was by his side and decided to become his living donor, an experience that changed both of their lives forever.
Jerry Ivory’s kidneys were larger than footballs when surgeons removed them — a result of a genetic illness called polycystic kidney disease. He had to quit work and even had problems breathing. With his kidneys gone, dialysis was only a short-term solution, and no one in his immediate family was able to be a living donor. After more than three years on the kidney transplant waitlist, Steve Fields came into the picture. A mutual friend had previously introduced Jerry and Steve, a postal worker from Oklahoma. Steve turned out to be a donor match for Jerry. Since the transplant, Jerry can now spend time with his family without extreme fatigue or dialysis. Steve has returned to his normal life — carrying mail 8 to 12 miles a day with no problem.
Diagnosed with chronic kidney disease, Brenda Loving faced a difficult challenge. The wait for a kidney transplant may take years and with a family to care for, Brenda didn’t have time to waste. Luckily, her sister Melita volunteered to be tested as a potential living-kidney donor. Today, Brenda is doing great and is happily enjoying time with her family.
When her husband of 28 years was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease, a slowly progressing genetic disease that leads to other life-threatening illnesses, Kathy was more than willing to become his living-kidney donor. Today, Kathy and her husband are both doing great and believe that they are lucky to have found each other and fallen in love.
Like his brother, Courtney Bost’s husband was diagnosed with polycystic kidney disease. With the support of her sister, Kathy, Courtney saved his life by becoming his living-kidney donor. While he was hesitant at first and worried about his wife’s safety, he is forever grateful for the gift Courtney gave him.