Beginning My Road To Kidney Donation

I was forwarded the following email exchange from my brother Kyle in December of 2010 …

Cherina is my niece.  My name is Swedini, and Cherina's mother is my younger sister.  Cherina is a beautiful, kind hearted, generous, and compassionate 23-year-old young lady. She is very special to me and I love her deeply.  There is nothing I would not do for her.

When Cherina was a young girl she inherited a kidney disease called Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), which has decreased her kidney function greatly.  As a result, Cherina will require a kidney transplant in the very near future (possibly before this coming February).  Presently, her kidneys are functioning at 17% and continue to decrease rapidly.  Without a transplant, Cherina's survival rate will be greatly decreased. 
By now you must be wondering why I have been telling you about Cherina.  My reason is that I am making an appeal to all who are reading this to seriously consider donating one of your kidneys to my niece; without a new kidney she will not have the opportunity to experience a normal life, including having a family and children.  She deserves to have a healthy life just like the rest of us!  Would you share your life with my niece?

Now let me tell you something about myself: when I was 18 years of age, I donated a kidney to my sister - Cherina's mother.  She was diagnosed with the same condition as Cherina.  I am so grateful that I had the chance to share a part of my body with her, which gave her the opportunity to have a quality life enjoying good health for the past 33 years.

There have been absolutely no ramifications to my health as a result of giving one of my kidneys.  I have enjoyed a healthy life and my lifestyle has not been compromised in any way.  Living with one kidney has not disabled me from doing anything that I have desired. Medical statistics reveal that there are no health dangers to a kidney donor and I am living proof of that.

There is no cost to you as a donor; all expenses will be administered by Cherina's medical plan.

None of us need two kidneys to live; maybe we have two because we are meant to have the opportunity to give the gift of life.  I urge you to please think about my appeal and consider sharing a part of yourself with my niece, Cherina.  You will be richly blessed for your generosity and unconditional love as I have been for the past 33 years.
 Please forward this on to anyone you think would be interested.
Sincerely,
Swedini
If you want more information about the possibility of becoming an organ donor, check out the following link.
http://www.transplantliving.org/SharedContentDocuments/Living_Donation_Booklet_Final.pdf>http://www.transplantliving.org/SharedContentDocuments/Living_Donation_Booklet_Final.pdf

To become a donor candidate for Cherina, call the University of Washington Medical Center Donor Program at (206)598-3627.
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Hey Everyone, 
Just passing this along in hopes of someone wanting to help another individual, who is capable.  Please read below, and pass to anyone else who you think may be interested ... Cherina is a good friend of mine, and her kidney is decreasing rapidly.  Please take a moment to read and God bless.
Sincerely,
Jeanna
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Where do I sign up to find out if I'm a match?  I'd love to help, if I'm able!


Kyle
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To become a donor candidate for Cherina, call the University of Washington Medical Center Donor Program at (206)598-3627.

The first thing to qualify would be to match her blood type.  She is an O, so she can receive from another O or an A2 ... if you don’t know your blood type you can donate your blood and ask them when they draw it.
God bless you!
Jeanna
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Is an 'A2' an 'A Positive' or 'A Negative'?


Kyle
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Positive or negative doesn't apply...you can be A Negative or A positive.  If you are an A then you would have to get further testing to see if you’re an A2 … there is no way to know if you’re an A2 unless you were specifically tested for it ...
thank you!
Jeanna
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So I got some clarification.  It appears that O's can only RECEIVE from other O's...correct?
Kyle
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Yes, but she can also receive from A2 ... but O is her best bet, and someone 35 or younger, because of her age ...  O is obviously more-rare, so it's disheartening to her, but she will find a donor, I know it!  But it is best to have the transplant before starting Dialysis (sp?) which at the rate her kidney is decreasing she could be needing dialysis soon :(  So, we are on a serious search for a donor...
thanks again!
Jeanna
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So as it turns out, I’m an AB Negative and my wife Lindsay is an AB Positive … so we are both OUT (as far as a donor is concerned) … so we need your help!  If you know of anyone who is willing to donate, please contact me, and I will put you in touch with Cherina.  Feel free to share this email with your database as well!!
Thanks SO much!!!
Kyle

As I read the story about Cherina’s aunt donating a kidney to her sister when she was young I had this feeling that I don’t know how to describe. I got to the bottom of the email and saw that they were looking for a donor with an O blood type. I must have been holding my breath the whole time because I remember letting it out while a voice deep inside of me said “your up.” What a strange thing to say; “your up.” I am pretty sure that is not regularly used in my repertoire of self-talk phrases. It was like someone else was calling me to bat, someone else was there telling me that I was going to do this. It was said with such confidence. It was a statement and not a question.

I spent the next three hours researching kidney donation. I read everything I could in those three hours; the surgery, the donation process, the side effects, the selection process, kidney disease, other peoples’ experiences, etc. And I said before, I was reading this not to decide if this was something I was going to do, but more like learning what was going to happen. From the moment I read the O blood type I knew I was the one that was going to give Cherina a kidney, and I was learning as much as I could so I could convince those around me that this was the right thing to do. I have always been determined, some would say stubborn, and have always been able to work things in my favor. So while I was somewhat nervous about bringing this up to my family, I knew that they would help me support Cherina.

After the initial conversation with my family, I spent the next week obsessed with this donation. Reading more and more, calling people, talking to my insurance company and my employer. Again, I was reading out of curiosity, not to be convinced.

The funny thing is, I don't really know her. Cherina is my niece and nephew’s preschool teacher. My brother and sister-in-law know her pretty well, and they all love her. She did come to a family Halloween party, and I'm pretty sure that we were introduced, but don’t remember her more than thinking that she was a pretty good Sarah Palin. We have talked on the phone once and texted back and forth a few times, but nothing more than kidney talk. I guess we will get to know each other a little better in the months to come.

I should probably say somewhere in here that donating a kidney is not going to be something that people will be surprised to hear that I am doing. I have always been a giver, and that is obvious to people who know me. What may not be so obvious is how I feel about organ donation. My college roommate’s dad is a heart transplant recipient. When she was 5 a dying person saved her father's life. It has been 23 years since his second shot at life, and I know how much that meant to her. Sitting on her bed in college, listening to her tell me about a conversation she had with other students in her class about thinking it was “gross” to donate an organ so they were against it, I decided that I was going to be a donor. I just never realized I might have the opportunity to do so while I was still living.

And so it begins …

~Kara