Patient Stories

Six Lives Connected through Paired Donor Kidney Exchange

May 14th, 2013 By Emory Transplant Center

Living Organ DonationThe Emory Transplant Center played a role in a 6-chain kidney swap that will forever bind 6 individuals.  Maya Cosola wanted to donate a kidney to her aunt but was not a compatible match.  So she agreed to be a part of paired donor kidney exchange program that allows incompatible donor and recipient pairs to be matched with other incompatible donor and recipient pairs, allowing kidneys to be exchanged between these pairs. A match between pairs was arranged, and Maya’s kidney was flown to someone in North Carolina, and thus began the 6-chain exchange across 4 states.

Share their touching story in this video from Fox 5 below:

Visit the Emory Kidney Transplant Program website for more information on the Emory Paired Donor Exchange program.

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When Living Organ Donation Means Living On Through Others

April 29th, 2013 By Emory Transplant Center

Living Organ Donation Donate Life MonthIn recognition of Donate Life month, the Emory Transplant Center was honored to have a very special speaker share an extraordinary story – one that touches the very heart of what it means to give the gift of life even in times of heartbreak.

Scott Haggard shared with Emory physicians and staff the story of his sister, Terri Haggard Wade – a loving 48 year old wife, mother, sister and daughter – who spent her professional career as a nurse.  And as part of the medical profession, Terri knew the importance of organ donation.  As a matter of fact, when her son was learning to drive, Terri said that before he could drive on his own, he would need to register to become an organ donor.

It was March of 2009 when Terri was rear ended in an automobile accident.  She began to experience headaches, and when they continued after a few weeks, Terri decided to go to an urgent care center to be evaluated. The urgent care center sent her to a nearby hospital to have a CT scan of her head.  And that was when they discovered Terri had a brain tumor.

On April 15, 2009, Terri had surgery to remove her tumor.  The surgery was more complicated than anticipated, and Terri did not wake up immediately after the surgery.  After ten days, Terri still had not awakened and her intracranial pressure spiked to very high levels, causing brain death.

At this time, Terri’s medical team approached her family asking them to make a very difficult decision.  They had to decide whether or not to allow Terri’s organs to be donated – they knew she wasn’t really with them anymore.

“We were never going to have Terri,” said Scott, “but to have her be able to help others, even in death, meant everything to us”.

To honor Terri’s wishes, her organs were donated, saving lives as she had done so many times before as a neonatal intensive care nurse at Egleston.  Terri was very loved among many – over 700 people were present at her funeral.

Although Scott knows that the individuals who received his sister’s organ are grateful for their gift of life, he says “It also means a lot to us, the donor family, to know that Terri is able to live through others”.

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Kevin Jordan and Coach Tom Still Hitting Homeruns

April 15th, 2013 By Emory Transplant Center

Kevin Jordan Wake Forest Kidney Transplant at Emory

The gift of giving is rewarding on many levels. Giving doesn’t have to be monetary or flashy; in fact, taking the extra step to register and give the gift of life can be the most rewarding gift ever.

Take for example two of our patients, Kevin Jordan and Coach Tom Walter. In 2011, Kevin was diagnosed with ANCA vasculitis, an autoimmune disorder that typically leads to almost immediate kidney failure. At the time, Kevin was an all-star baseball player being actively recruited by both Wake Forest University (WFU) and Auburn University, but he was faced with an illness that could potentially change his future, not only in baseball, but in life. Kevin opted to join the crew at Wake Forest, but as his condition worsened, it became clear to both Kevin and Coach Tom that something would need to be done.

With only a 15% chance of a non-family member making it through the organ transplant matching to donation process, Coach Tom stepped in, armed with a goal and a healthy kidney to donate , he got tested to see if he was a match to serve as Kevin’s donor. The chances of Coach Tom’s kidney being a viable option for Kevin were slim, but… what if? Coach Tom proved to be a viable organ donor for Kevin, and without hesitation, he agreed. You can read more about their story here.

After going through with the transplant, both Kevin Jordan and Coach Tom Walter are doing fine. So great, in fact, that they recently came back to Atlanta with the rest of the Wake Forest Baseball team, who was in town to take on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets! It seems that Kevin and Coach Tom truly continue to hit the ball out of the park!

April is National Donate Life Month, register today to be an organ donor and give the lasting gift of life.

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Atlanta: Celebrate Organ Donation with us in April!

April 9th, 2013 By Emory Transplant Center

Donate Life Month LogoApril is when we as a nation recognize National Donate Life Month. To celebrate the gift of life and organ donation here in Atlanta, Emory is hosting a number of activities and events. We take this time to honor organ donors, the families who make the crucial decision to donate a loved one’s organs, and the relatives, friends and others who donate living donor organs to transplant recipients.

Here are the activities we have planned during Donate Life Month:

• Thursday, April 18, 2013 — Swing Easy, Hit Hard Charity Golf Tournament

Book your favorite foursome in this benefit golf tournament and support the Emory Transplant Center and Georgia Transplant Foundation. Event info and registration > 

(Kirk Franz, the recreation manager for the city of Johns Creek, and his family and friends first organized the Swing Easy, Hit Hard Charity Golf Tournament in 2010 to support his transplant fund. He had a lifesaving liver transplant at Emory to treat cholangiocarcinoma, or bile duct cancer. Now that he is fully recovered from his transplant, he and his family (pictured below) organized a nonprofit foundation to continue hosting the event annually to benefit other transplant patients at Emory and at Georgia Transplant Foundation. The foundation helps patients like Franz raise funds for escalating medical expenses following transplantation, which the organization matches up to $10,000 in the first year post-transplant. Last year’s golf tournament raised more than $2,000 each for the Emory Transplant Center and Georgia Transplant Foundation.)

• Friday, April 19, 2013 — Blue and Green Day

Donate Life Month, Blue & Green Day

Flaunt your best blue and green and show your support for Donate Life’s efforts to register individuals as organ, eye and tissue donors. Wear blue and green or decorate your office or join the day’s Facebook event page. Make sure you post your pictures on our Emory Transplant Center Facebook page, too!

You can also learn more about Blue and Green Day on the Donate Life website.

• Week of April 22 – 26, 2013 — Emory Donate Life Week

Look for information tables with staff and LifeLink of Georgia volunteers answering questions about donation on Monday and Tuesday during lunch hour outside Emory University Hospital’s Asbury Court and in the mornings on the walkway between Emory Clinic buildings A and B.

This month also gives us an opportunity to recognize and thank our neuroscience and critical care colleagues dedicated to caring for patients at the end-of-life who are potential donors. They lovingly work with donor families during a stressful point in their lives. In addition, we commend the staff that work with individuals who make the decision to become a related or non-related living donor. The donation process can be a catharsis for these donors and families, who help make renewed lives possible through transplantation.

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Sherrell Gay Receives the Gift of Life Just in Time to Witness New Life

March 12th, 2013 By Emory Transplant Center

Sherrell Gay, Double Transplant Patient

Sherrell Gay

If you remember reading about kidney transplant recipient Ken Sutha and his participation in the U.S. Transplant Games, you might also remember reading about Sherrell Gay, who received her heart at the Emory Heart Transplant Center and also participated in the games. In fact, Sherrell celebrated the 8-year anniversary of her transplant procedure during the Games’ closing ceremonies.

Although Sherrell (who’s originally from Waynesboro, GA) received her first heart transplant a decade ago, for the past 18 months, she has been on the waiting list for another heart due to allograph vasculopathy, a fairly common long-term complication from heart transplant. Allograph vasculoplasty is known more commonly as chronic rejection, which can develop in transplanted hearts at any time – soon after transplant or many years later. The small vessels in the heart become blocked first and as the disease progresses, the larger vessels can become blocked too. “I was diagnosed with allograph vasculpathy at my 7 year annual post-transplant appointment,” Sherrell recalls. “I was treated with medication for 1 ½ years and then the team decided the disease had progressed too far to benefit from drug therapy and I needed to be evaluated for another heart transplant.”

Both throughout her first heart transplant journey and while Sherrell was hospitalized for a portion of 2012, her kidney function continued to decline. “As my wait time continued, my kidney failure worsened, as did my heart function,” Sherrell recalls. Emory’s kidney transplant team was asked to consult on her case, and they concluded that after Sherrell had spent 10 years on immunosuppressants and her kidney function was in decline for almost a decade, her kidneys were in end stage kidney failure. They added Sherrell to the kidney transplant waiting list, knowing that the other option was a potential lifetime on dialysis following her next heart transplant.

Thankfully, Sherrell was contacted about her waiting list status and learned she would be receiving her new heart and two kidneys from the same organ donor. “On the day I got the call there were organs matched for me, I had to start emergency continual dialysis. The organs became available at just the right time,” she says, and “by doing both organs from the same donor, I stood a better chance at successfully living healthy.”

On December 9, 2012, Sherrell received her successful double organ transplant and is now recovering and doing well. Dr. Duc Nguyen performed her heart transplant first, and Dr. Paul Tso performed her kidney transplant immediately after.

While Gay spent much of 2012 at Emory, this mother of two daughters and one son never missed a chance to help cheer up and educate other candidates and recipients and families about the transplant process from her bedside, except, of course, when she was most sick. (At the worst point, she suffered two heart attacks and was placed on emergency peritoneal dialysis.) If such a thing were awarded, Gay would win the Oscar for the Best Advocate Ever for Organ Transplantation.

“I am extremely grateful for my donor family who made the decision to make that donation of life — we got the best gift that day,” says Gay, who also helps lead the Georgia Transplant Foundation Mentor Project.

We are very glad to hear about Sherrell’s remarkable recovery and send her best wishes on her continued recovery and on the upcoming arrival of her first grandbaby. Thanks to her double organ transplant, Sherrell is now well enough to be by her daughter Tracy’s side when she gives birth at the end of March.

The gift of life just in time to witness the gift of a new life; now that is a transplant miracle.

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Emory Heart Transplant Patients Celebrate the Gift of Life!

February 20th, 2013 By Emory Transplant Center

Heart transplant gift of lifeOur Emory transplant surgeons help facilitate the tremendous gift of organ donation and renewed life by performing approximately 60-70% of all heart transplant procedures in Georgia each year. On an annual basis, approximately 50 new Georgia adults receive heart transplants each year, and recently, over 100 of our Emory Heart Transplant patients and their families gathered together to celebrate this gift of life.

Watch this heartwarming Fox 5 News piece and meet some of our patients whose lives have been changed thanks to their heart transplant procedures.

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For Ed Mann & Felicia Henderson, It’s a Small World After All

January 16th, 2013 By Emory Transplant Center

Ed Mann Felicia Henderson Living Donor Kidney Transplant

Ed Mann and Felicia Henderson on a recent visit to the Emory Transplant Center.

As a physical education teacher, every day Ed Mann helps keep the children of Mount Zion Elementary School in Carrollton, GA in tip-top-physical condition, but ironically, his own health has been suffering for the past three years. In 2009, Ed was diagnosed with scleroderma, an autoimmune disease that resulted in a decline in his heart and pulmonary health initially, but then, took a toll on his kidneys. As a result, six hours of every one of Ed’s days was spent undergoing dialysis treatments. And despite his declining health and ongoing medical needs, he still didn’t missed a single day of work.

After seeking a kidney donor via traditional methods to no avail, one day a few months ago, Ed had an idea that he called “a shot in the dark,” but it was a decision that proved to be much more than that. Ed posted a message on Facebook, “Just a little advertising. Still need a kidney. 404-712-4450.”, which is the phone number of the Emory Kidney Transplant Program. A shot in the dark turned into an even more unlikely set of circumstances when the person who answered Ed’s call for help was not only a fellow employee at Mount Zion Elementary, but also Ed’s longtime friend of 16 years, Felicia Henderson.

Not knowing whether she would be a match for Ed, “I just called the number,” recalls Felicia. And after undergoing the necessary testing, the team at the Emory Transplant Center confirmed that Felicia was indeed a match to be Ed’s kidney donor. Upon receiving the news, Felicia immediately committed to being Ed’s donor, “People that are able to give a kidney live longer than the average person, not because they have given a kidney, but because they were healthy enough in the first place to be able to do it.”

Because of Felicia’s gift of life, Ed will continue to coach and teach the children of Mount Zion Elementary how to stay physically fit. “The gift of life. I know I’ve got so many good friends. Very thoughtful, very kind.”, he says.

Felicia and Ed’s transplant operation took place exactly two months ago today, on November 16, 2012. Since the surgery, both Ed and Felicia are doing well. They spent time with their families over the holidays celebrating renewed health and the gift of life, and have both returned to work at Mount Zion Elementary.

When we asked Ed if there is anything he would like to say to Felicia, he told us, “Yes. I would like to tell her thank you for saving my life. You are the most thoughtful and kind person I know, and I appreciate what you did for me.”

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Help Us Honor Nurse Allison Batson and Her Gift of Life – Vote Today!

September 4th, 2012 By Emory Transplant Center

Nurse Allison Batson, Patient Clay Taber

Nurse Allison Batson with Clay Taber

Every once in awhile, you meet someone so special that they become part of you forever. For 23-year-old Emory kidney transplant patient Clay Taber, that person is Allison Batson – literally.

A few months ago, we told you the story of a transplant nurse at Emory University Hospital, Allison, and her selfless donation of one of her kidneys to Taber last January, a gift that likely saved him months on dialysis — if not his life. Allison and Clay met when he was an inpatient at Emory University Hospital fighting a rare disease called Goodpasture’s Syndrome, a life-threatening autoimmune disorder characterized by kidney disease and lung hemorrhage. Allison saw more than a patient in Clay.  She saw her own children, all close to Clay’s age.

“I learned more about Clay, his family, his life, what he saw for his future,” Allison recalls. “He wanted to get married to his sweetheart. He’d just graduated from college. The whole world was his, with the exception of this incredibly rare illness that hit him out of the blue. I have children his age, and I felt the same kind of pain his mother was feeling. Something inside me said I needed to do more.”

Though Clay’s blood type is rare, Allison was tested to be a donor and proved to be a match. On Tuesday, January 10th, Allison’s kidney was removed and transplanted into Clay’s body. Nearly half a year later, Clay has recovered well, even finding a weekend in June to marry his college love.

Though Allison has never asked for special treatment or even a hint of recognition, her colleagues recently submitted her profile to Johnson  & Johnson’s Amazing Nurses Contest. She was selected as one of 10 finalists. Voting is now up to the public. If Allison wins, she’ll receive a trip for two to Los Angeles to attend the 2012 CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute live broadcast show, courtesy of CNN.  Though a trip to sunny LA is quite a prize, Allison has a bigger gift in mind.

“I am once again humbled by this nomination and very excited to be recognized,” says Allison. “But more than that, my hopes for this contest are that it will spread the word about the Living Donor program.  There are more than 90,000 Americans on the waiting list for a kidney transplant. That’s 90,000 too many. Relatives, loved ones, friends and even strangers can give this lifesaving gift.”

To vote for Allison, visit http://www.amazingnurses.com. Voters can cast one vote per day until Sept. 28. The winner will be announced December 2 at the CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute live broadcast.

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Islet Cell Transplant for Type 1 Diabetes? Julie Allred’s Story (Part II)

August 10th, 2012 By Emory Transplant Center

Julie Allred, Islet Transplant PatientIn November, we shared with you part I of Julie Allred’s story. Of the nearly three million Americans living with type 1 diabetes, many of them will be able to successfully control their disease with insulin injections or pumps. But like Julie Allred, some patients will develop brittle type 1 diabetes, a condition in which even insulin injections and pumps cannot fully control the dangerous and often unpredictable swings in blood sugar that can lead to loss of consciousness and coma.

Throughout her life, Julie’s low blood sugar has been a constant source of concern, affecting her moods, relationships, career and ability to think clearly. A type 1 diabetic since age 10, Julie has always had to have someone, whether it be her father, husband or daughter, be on the lookout for the highs and lows of her blood sugar because she could not recognize them herself.

“I could never go anywhere alone,” says Julie. “And, I got to the point where I couldn’t even be in my home alone. Looking back, I realize now that my husband and daughter were always coordinating their schedules so that one of them could make sure that I was ok. It wasn’t just me who had diabetes. My whole family was dealing with it, too.”

But thanks to two islet cell transplants — one in July 2011 and another in February 2012 — at the hands of Emory transplant surgeon Dr. Nicole Turgeon and interventional radiologist Dr. Kevin Kim –– Julie has experienced relief in ways she never knew possible. Soon after the first islet transplant, the episodes of life-threatening low blood sugar levels stopped for Allred, helping her get back to the things she enjoys.

“The transplant has allowed my blood sugar to stay even throughout the day,” says Allred. “I have never felt this way in my life. I have more energy, and I am able to do things without constant worry and without someone always having to watch me.”

As part of a multi-year national research study on the islet cell transplant procedure, Allred is one of just 18 patients who has had the procedure at Emory, the only transplant center offering islet cell transplants in Georgia. Insulin-producing cells (islets) are harvested from an organ donor’s pancreas and inserted into the recipient’s liver. The fragile islets implanted in Julie’s liver serve to take over the job of making insulin, reducing the need for insulin shots, at least temporarily, and helping her body regain the ability to maintain steady, healthy blood sugar levels. Julie has been able to reduce her insulin from 65 units a day received through a 24-hour insulin pump to just a once daily injection of four units at bedtime.

“I’m so lucky to be one of those few people to have that little bit of normalcy for my life and family,” Allred says. “My family and I finally have freedom.”

Julie’s father, who was her primary caregiver, passed away shortly before Julie’s first transplant.

“My dad always said there would be a day when this would happen, that I would feel better,” says Julie. “Though he’s not here to experience it with me, I know he’s watching me and is so happy that he was right.”

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Lung Transplant – One Woman’s Success Story

June 28th, 2012 By Harriet Boger

Harriet Boger, Lung Transplant Patient

Author: Harriet Boger, Lung Transplant Recipient

As I write this blog, I am on Marco Island with my sister. We played 18 holes of golf, walking the course and pulling our carts. We also play tennis every afternoon and have played both bocce ball and croquet too. I walk on the beach every day (of course, always wearing a cover-up and hat as directed by my doctor), and reflect on my life. This is definitely something I could not have done the 2 years before my transplant.

I am so thankful for every breath that I take, and want to share my story to give people hope.

Road to transplant…

I had my transplant on February 26, 2008 – that was just 4 short years ago. I clearly remember the day I was told that I had Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis.

I used to love to hike in the North Carolina Mountains, but was finding it harder and harder to breathe when I was walking. I thought perhaps it was because I was not exercising enough so I tried to be more active but the shortness of breath continued. I decided it was time to see my doctor about this and in August of 2004 I was diagnosed with Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF). I remember the day my doctor called and told me. After the news, I immediately hung up and went on-line to look up the condition. I read that there was no cure, and that as it got worse there would be unrelenting suffocation. And most of all I was shocked to read that the life expectancy for this disease was 3-5 years. I was alone and burst into tears.

For the next three years my lungs rapidly declined. I did not want anyone to know. My PCP sent me to a pulmonologist who was trying to treat the disease with steroids and harsh antibiotics but the ability to breath only got worse. I told my husband and finally my sister. She too looked up the disease and kept suggesting that I look into having a lung transplant, but that thought was just too foreign to me. My sister called the IPF Foundation and she tried her best to convince me that a transplant was my only hope of survival.

By Christmas 2007 I was in a wheel chair and tethered to a 25-foot tube. In one month I had gone from only needing up to 6 liters of oxygen (not great, but could manage with a dainty oxygen tank that I carried in my handbag) to needing 12 liters and having to stay home tethered to larger oxygen concentrator which would not function if my cord was longer than 25 feet. My life changed from being filled with activities to sitting on a sofa by day and being so exhausted by eating or dressing or doing anything that I looked forward to night and sleeping.

The decision…

I remember that Christmas in 2007, my son and his fiancé were visiting. My son saw that I was getting sicker by the day. I was unable to even stand up without gasping for breath. My son sat on my bed one night and said, “Mom, I want to walk you down the aisle at my wedding in May and that is 5 months away. I want you to live. You can’t wait any longer, you have to do something.” I decided to get listed for a transplant. My sister had researched possible centers, and thought I should to Barnes at St Lewis because they performed the first lung transplant. But a dear friend, Dr. Fray Marshall, told me about the Emory Transplant Center and that they had an excellent Lung Transplant program.

Gaining my life back…

During my downward spiral I could do virtually nothing for a year before my transplant. Since my recovery I have resumed my normal routine. I am back to hiking and trying to play golf, croquet and bridge. I have no restrictions as far as activities. But to prevent exposure to bacteria which can cause infections, I can no longer enjoy my two favorite foods, raw oysters or steak tartar. The only other restriction is staying out of the sun without a hat and sunscreen, which most people my age should do anyway so that is not an issue.

But also giving back…

How could I not want to give back to the community? I was almost dead and someone gave me my life back, the most precious gift anyone can give. I am so grateful and thankful for my donor and transplant team that all I want to do is help in any way possible. I go to three support groups at different hospitals and visit patients and their families whenever I am asked to do so. I am a Family/Patient Advisor for Emory and on the Unit Practice Council for 5BS (the transplant floor at Emory University Hospital). I attend pre-transplant meetings answering questions from patients. The doctors can tell patients about the transplant but they want to know from me how it will feel. I believe I was predestined to have an illness that lead to this transplant so I can be a vessel for God and do the things I now do to help patients and families. I hope to do more to help raise awareness for the importance of organ donation.

A huge thank you to Emory…

From the time I first walked into Emory, when my doctors took a chance and put me on the transplant list, until I was transplanted worked like clockwork. The most important thing was the care and compassion of my whole transplant team, including doctors, nurses and staff. My surgeon was dedicated, caring and precise. My nurses on the Emory Transplant unit catered to my every need. The transplant coordinators conditioned me to the new lifestyle of pills and post-transplant regimen. They worked together so beautifully and were deeply passionate about both their work and their patients. This was so evident in the way they worked together and this respect for each other reverberated throughout and made such a difference.

A huge thank you to organ donors…

The greatest gift of love that anyone could ever give is the gift of life. When that gift is given a life lives on. I feel the spirit of my donor in me and only wish I knew who she or he was so I could thank their family personally and learn more about that person. I feel I am more compassionate than I was before the transplant, and I think it was gained from the spirit of my unknown donor. I feel that person living in me sometimes and that makes me want to be a better person. Thank you to all the organ donors out there! You are all heroes!

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