Man in Need of Kidney Donor Turns to Social Media

Ditmas Park Patch | Caitlan Nolan

Neil Jaffee was never a big fan of the internet. He had no use for Facebook or Twitter, used email because he had to and considers the youth of this generation to be full-fledged technology addicts. But lately his outlook on the Web has changed considerably.

"I didn't have much interest in social media before this," Jaffee, 69, told Patch.

The "this" Jaffee speaks of is polycystic kidney disease, or PKD, an inherited disorder that causes the kidneys to fill with cysts and become enlarged, making it difficult to breathe and other complications such as high blood pressure. The disease is broken into five stages, and Jaffee, who was diagnosed in 1997, entered stage four in October.

"If and when it reaches the next stage, it means dialysis," said Jaffee, who has an AV fistula in his arm that is ready for dialysis.

"It's not a very desirable situation for a father of two young children. Dialysis will keep you alive, but it's not as good as having a kidney."

Jaffee is registered with the Transplant Unit at Mt. Sinai Hospital in New York, but the wait for kidney in New York State can take four to seven years. Finding a living donor would be much more preferable, so Jaffee got to work on finding one.

Read more: http://ditmaspark.patch.com/articles/ditmas-park-man-in-need-of-kidney-turns-to-social-media-to-find-donor