Donate Life Organ and Tissue Donation Blog (sm)

The skilled hands of a lost husband hold out hope for a tenacious artist

2012-02-02T07:19:00.001-08:00

The Boston Globe | Liz Kowalczyk

To say Steven Lloyd was good with his hands would be an understatement. He refurbished the run-down ranch house he and his wife, Jodi, bought when they were engaged, installing walls and plumbing, and built a wrap-around deck and stone walls along the property’s edge. He repaired friends’ cars and restored a 25-year-old Jeep for off-roading.

But Lloyd was unexpectedly stricken by a massive brain hemorrhage in October, on the day before his 44th birthday. As he lay dying in the hospital, the New England Organ Bank called his wife at their New Hampshire home with a special request: Did she want to donate her husband’s hands?

Jodi Lloyd hung up and turned the question over in her mind for several hours. “Why let these hands go to waste?’’ thought Lloyd, recalling her decision in an interview this week. “Steven’s talents were in his hands. It just made sense to me.’’

Within days, doctors at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston transplanted Steven Lloyd’s hands and lower arms onto Richard Mangino, who had lost his forearms, as well as his lower legs, to a bloodstream infection.
Read more: http://www.boston.com/news/health/articles/2012/02/02/hand_transplant_donor_was_gifted_with_his_hands_recipient_doing_well/

Donor, recipient share unbreakable bond

2012-02-02T07:14:00.000-08:00

The Acorn | Sylvie Belmond

More than 100,000 men, women and children in the U.S. are waiting for lifesaving organ transplants.

Chris Breed, an Agoura Hills resident who was born with hereditary kidney disease, is among those who have received an organ from a living donor.

The owner of Sunset Room restaurant in Agoura Hills was weeks away from having to begin dialysis when his friend Brian Berg learned he was a compatible organ donor for Breed.

They underwent successful kidney transplant surgery at UCLA on Dec. 20.

The two men met 10 years ago through their daughters, Rebecca and Morgan. The girls became friends while attending Willow Elementary School in Agoura, and their parents and siblings also developed a close bond.

“The transplant has brought us even closer,” Breed said.

“Brian’s been so concerned about me since he gave me the kidney, making sure it is okay and working, as if it was his responsibility,” he joked.

Breed, who enjoys the outdoors and played semi-professional rugby in England during his youth, began looking for a matching donor a decade ago. His search intensified in recent years as his health began to deteriorate.
Read more: http://www.theacorn.com/news/2012-02-02/Community/Donor_recipient_share_unbreakable_bond.html

Save Lives; Become an Organ Donor

2012-02-02T07:11:00.000-08:00

The Chronicle @ Kettle Run - Kettle Run High School

Seventh grader Sydney Davies has been dealing with Acute Myeloid Leukemia since July 2011. Davies’ case has prompted hundreds of teenagers, and adults, within the community to receive testing to determine whether or not they could be a bone marrow donor and has inspired others to become organ donors.

According to the National Kidney Foundation, there are currently over 104,000 Americans in need of an organ transplant, and every day, approximately 18 of these people die waiting for a donation that never comes. Ten percent of patients waiting for transplants are children under 18 years old and can often only accept organs from those who are the same size. The numbers are shocking, but the only way to save the patients’ lives is to register to be an organ donor.

While organ donations can be given through a live donor for certain organs, donations most often are taken when a patient at a hospital is officially pronounced dead. Sadly, misconceptions and fears about organ donation prevent people from registering to become an organ donor and potentially saving others’ lives.
Though the myths that surround organ donation are many and varied, the Mayo Clinic confronts some of the most common.

Among these myths is that if someone is an organ donor, the hospital won’t work as hard to save their life and that the donor’s family will have to pay for the donation expenses.
Read more: http://my.hsj.org/Schools/Newspaper/tabid/100/view/frontpage/articleid/494934/newspaperid/3082/Save_Lives_Become_an_Organ_Donor.aspx

9-year-old receives 6 organ donations at one time

2012-02-02T07:07:00.000-08:00

Todays THV CBS 11 | Lindsey Tugman

BOSTON, MA (CNN) - It's a story of survival with a happy ending. A little girl from Maine received not one or two, but six life-saving organ transplants and is now on the road to recovery.

On the top floor of Boston's Children's Hospital, a spirited 9-year-old girl from Maine is packing up her things to come home.

When Alannah was five, she was diagnosed with a rare and massive tumor that doesn't respond to chemotherapy. The tumor wrapped itself around Alannah's esophagus, stomach, liver, pancreas, spleen, and small intestines. And it was only a matter of time before the tumor would cut off the blood supply to those organs. She needed a six organ transplant. Dr. Heung Be Kim says, "This is a very difficult operation. It's about as difficult as you can get. And the hard part of it is the actual removal of the tumor and the organs."

After being on the transplant waiting list for 15 months, one family's loss became Alannah's miracle. Three months ago, doctors took Alannah in for her transplant surgery. Her grandmother Deb Skolas says, "I was calm. I knew he was going to be able to do it. I just knew Dr. Kim could do it."

During the 14 and a half hour surgery, doctors removed the cancerous tumor and six organs that the tumor had wrapped itself around. Doctors then transplanted in six new organs and gave Alannah her life back.
Read more: http://www.todaysthv.com/news/article/193761/288/9-year-old-receives-6-organ-donations-at-one-time

Cornation Street star joins organ donation plea

2012-02-02T07:03:00.000-08:00

Click Manchester | Anna Wright

Shobna Gulati, Corrie's Sunita Alahan, has joined other North West celebrities to lend her backing to a new NHS campaign.

The campaign has been launched by NHS Blood and Transplant to urge more people from Greater Manchester's Black and Asian communities to join the Organ Donor Register.

Currently 26% of patients awaiting organ transplants in Greater Manchester are from Black and Asian communities, yet these communities account for less than 2% of people who have signed the Register.

Jane Monks, Specialist Nurse for Organ Donation at NHSBT, said: “It is vital that more Black and Asian people join the NHS Organ Donor Register. The message is quite simple – more Black and Asian patients will have the opportunity to receive a life-saving transplant if more people from those communities join the Register.

“Transplants can be carried out between people from different ethnic groups, but an organ is more likely to be a close match, and as a result a transplant is much more likely to be successful, if the donor and recipient have the same ethnic origin. Becoming an organ donor means that you could help save or enhance up to nine lives.”

In support of the campaign, Gulati said: “I used to think that organ donation was a difficult decision to make but then I realised you can leave a tangible legacy, and it's actually really straightforward. For our communities, putting your name on that Register could make a real difference. Just do it and encourage your family and friends too - we can all help save lives."
Read more: http://www.click-manchester.com/news/local-news/1215263-coronation-street-star-joins-organ-donor-plea.html

Black History Month - Dr. Samuel Lee Kountz - Pioneer of Organ Transplant Surgery - Performed First Kidney Transplant

2012-02-02T06:49:00.000-08:00

The Black Oklahoman

Samuel Lee Kountz Jr. was a physician and pioneer in organ transplantation, particularly renal transplant research and surgery. An Arkansas success story, he overcame the limitations of his childhood as an African American in the Delta region of a racially segregated state to achieve national and world prominence in the medical field.

Samuel Lee Kountz, the eldest son of a Baptist minister, was born in Lexa, Arkansas, in 1930. He first became interested in medicine at the age of eight, when he accompanied an injured friend to a local hospital for emergency treatment. He was so moved by the doctors’ ability to relieve suffering that he decided to become a physician. He completed his early education in Lexa, then spent three years at a Baptist boarding school established for youngsters considering the ministry. Although the school provided him with the discipline he needed, its academic program was weak, and he was forced to take remedial courses before gaining admission to the Agricultural, Mechanical and Normal College of Arkansas (now the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff).

Kountz soon proved himself an able student, however, and graduated third in his class in 1952. His hopes and ambitions were clear. On his college application, submitted in July of 1948, he wrote that he planned to be “one of the best students that has ever attended AM&N College” and “one of the best doctors in the world in my day and time,” according to Claude H. Organ, Jr., in A Century of Black Surgeons: The U.S.A. Experience.

During his senior year, Kountz happened to meet Senator J. William Fulbright, who had once been president of the University of Arkansas. Impressed by Kountz’s energy and enthusiasm, Fulbright asked him what he planned to do following graduation. Kountz told him that he hoped to attend a black medical school, where he could realize his lifelong dream of becoming a surgeon. Fulbright urged him to consider the medical school at the University of Arkansas, Little Rock, instead. Kountz applied but was rejected; he spent the next two years completing graduate work in chemistry at the university’s Fayetteville campus. Then, on the basis of his accomplishments, he was awarded a full medical scholarship, and in 1954 became one of the first black students to be admitted to the University of Arkansas Medical School.
Read more: http://www.blackoklahoman.com/archives/5681?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=black-history-month-dr-samuel-lee-kountz-pioneer-of-organ-transplant-surgery-performed-the-first-kidney-transplant

Organ donations an issue for multicultural Australia

2012-02-02T06:42:00.000-08:00

Health Reporter, Australia

Australia’s multicultural diversity represents a major hurdle in bringing Australia’s rate of organ and tissue donation to world standard, according to Transplant Australia.

However grassroots community-driven campaigns and testimonials from those Australians with multicultural backgrounds will help break down traditional misunderstanding about donation.

According to the Australia and New Zealand Organ Donation Registry, four per cent of organ donors over the past six years were Australians with an Asian family heritage.

“Yet our research shows 16 per cent of those waiting for a kidney transplant have a family background from Asia according to Transplant Australia CEO, Chris Thomas.

“More and more people with multicultural backgrounds are now on our waiting lists but we all need to understand that we are much more likely to receive a transplant, especially a kidney, if someone from our genetic background or genetic pool is donating. This is simply because of tissue typing and compatibility issues.”
Read More: http://www.healthreporter.com.au/featured-news/2012/02/02/organ-donations-an-issue-for-multicultural-australia/

Heart transplant teen thanks blood donors

2012-02-01T17:45:00.000-08:00

Orange County Register | Courtney Perkes

While awaiting a transplant, Donovan Ho was kept alive by donated blood. He recently got a chance to thank 11 of his benefactors.

Donovan Ho, 17, felt his heart beat a little faster as he stood at a microphone in front of a room full of strangers, wearing black skinny jeans and an untucked shirt and tie.

Two years ago, Donovan was lying in a UCLA hospital bed waiting for a heart to become available for transplant. What sustained him were a series of smaller donations – in all, 72 units of blood, plasma and platelets – that he received during his four-month stay.

Usually, the process is anonymous. Donors give and have no idea who receives. Recipients, if they are conscious, see nothing but a bag of blood dripping from an IV pole. But Friday, Donovan and his family, who live in Orange, were given the opportunity to meet and thank 11 of his donors.

Is Denial of Life-Saving Care for Mentally Disabled Girl a Sign of Things to Come?

2012-02-01T17:42:00.000-08:00

National Catholic Register | Charlotte Hayes

Philadelphia hospital won't discuss case, but medical experts view the situation cautiously.

PHILADELPHIA — When Joe and Chrissy Rivera sat down with a physician at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia to talk about their child’s medical prognosis, the couple had no inkling they were about to become part of a heated national debate.

Their 3-year-old, Amelia, has a rare genetic disorder, Wolf Hirschhorn syndrome, a condition caused by missing chromosomal material. It causes mental disabilities and may include other birth defects. Amelia’s kidneys were failing, and she would need a kidney transplant sometime within the next year or so.

As described in a blog post by Chrissy Rivera, a high-school English teacher, the doctor, who is not named, placed two sheets of paper on the conference table last month, with words highlighted in pink: “mentally retarded” on one and “brain damage” on the other.

According to Rivera, Amelia was being denied a transplant because of her mental disabilities.
Read more: http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/is-denial-of-life-saving-care-for-mentally-disabled-girl-a-sign-of-things-t/#ixzz1lBVS6pRk

Thank to a heart transplant, A Tennessee Family will Celebrate a Very Special Valentine's Day

2012-02-01T17:39:00.000-08:00

Cision Wire | Children's Organ Transplant Association

Children’s Organ Transplant Association

Giving Hope … Making Miracles

Bloomington, Indiana – February 1, 2012 -- February is the month to celebrate love and hearts. For the Deane family of Franklin, Tennessee, February truly is a month to celebrate hearts … and selfless gifts from the heart. Two-year-old Witt is alive, growing and able to celebrate Valentine’s Day this year because of the heart donation he received 18 months ago.

Norm and Alison Deane were blessed by the birth of their first boy, Henry Withers “Witt” Deane, on April 6, 2010. But joy turned quickly to fear when they were told he had a congenital heart defect (aortic stenosis). Witt was rushed to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at the Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.

Doctors were able to repair the baby’s heart valve and Witt went home. He appeared to be thriving and the Deane family was ready to return to a normal life with their newborn and their two daughters, Riley and Ellery Kate.

A week before Witt’s scheduled two-month cardiology check up, he seemed fussier than usual, developed a cough and refused to eat. Hearing this, the cardiologist worked him into her schedule a little early and discovered that Witt’s mitral and pulmonary valves were not working properly. While the team of specialists was trying to come up with a plan, Witt went into respiratory distress and was placed in the pediatric intensive care unit.

Dallas Mom to donate her kidney for her stricken toddler Jace Glenn

2012-02-01T17:34:00.000-08:00

All Voices | Nina Rai

It all happened when Makenzie Glenn gave birth to Jace Glenn prematurely about six weeks earlier. Unfortunately, the baby was not expected to live for long as he had a medical condition called a polycystic kidney, when he was born.

Jace was therefore immediately rushed to Dallas’s Medical City Children’s Hospital. He was barely four-weeks-old when due to his condition; pediatric surgeons had to remove both of his kidneys.

Transplant surgeon Dr. Alejandro Mejia said baby Jace is suffering from polycystic kidney disease which is a rapidly progressing disease “He’s on dialysis, and has been for a couple years,” he informed.

Despite facing such tough challenge, the toddler still managed to prolong his life by three long years. Now is the time for him to undergo a major transplant to save his life. Both his family and doctors are preparing for this critical life-saving surgery.
Read more: All Voices

9-year-old Girl Heads Home After 6 Organ Transplant at Children's Hospital

2012-02-01T17:31:00.000-08:00

CBS Boston

BOSTON (CBS) — A 9-year-old girl went back home to Maine Wednesday, three months after a groundbreaking multiple organ transplant at Children’s Hospital Boston.

Alannah Shevenell of Hollis underwent 14-and-a-half hours of surgery in October to remove an aggressive tumor and six organs – her stomach, pancreas, spleen, liver, small bowel and the esophagus.

The tumor had twisted around the organs, so they all had to be transplanted.

“They come together sort of as a cluster, so it’s almost like transplanting one big organ,” said Dr. Heung Bae Kim, the director of Children’s Pediatric Transplant Center.

“The only way to take out this tumor was to remove all of the organs that were involved.”

WBZ NewsRadio 1030′s Mark Katic reports

Help us register 20 million in 2012

2012-02-01T09:03:00.000-08:00

Donate Life America

20 Million in 2012 Campaign – How You Can Help

Recently the donation and transplantation community celebrated the achievement of 100 million registered organ, eye and tissue donors. However, as long as the need for donated organs surpasses the supply and patients die awaiting a lifesaving transplant, more must be done.

To address this critical need, Donate Life America has launched the 20 Million in 2012 campaign. Local, state and national events like Donate Life Flaunt Your Blue and Green, Donate Life Linking Hands, Donate Life Champions and Fan for Life, and Donate Life Flash Mobs will help to draw attention to the need but reaching the goal will require the involvement and action of Everyone who has been touched by donation and transplantation. This means you!

Here’s how you can help:
Register to be a donor at donatelifeamerica.org
Prepare your “elevator speech” to make sure it includes the request of someone to register as a donor.
Share your donation/transplantation story with friends in person, in writing, by email or phone (ask them to register with their state donor registry or at donatelifeamerica.org).
Share your story with the Donate Life community by visiting Facebook and write on the wall
Volunteer with your local recovery agency
Use the Hope card (coming soon)
Order and use promotional items; order at http://store.donatelife.net/
Use 20 Million in 2012 Web banners and Facebook button

On behalf of Donate Life America and the many people who will be touched by your efforts, thank you for your commitment. Check back often for updates on the 20 Million in 2012 campaign.
Visit Donate LIfe America HERE

New England Man Gives the Gift of Life

2012-02-01T08:59:00.000-08:00

Donate Life Vermont

Submitted by: Carrie Bogie

Hello, my name is Carrie Bogie and I have one amazing story to share with you. My husband Nick Bogie passed away on March 31st, 2011, he was 26 years old. He was such an amazing person, wonderful husband and such a loving father. We met in August of 07 and were married December of 08, it truly was a love story. He saved me from a downward spiral and made me whole again. We had our first son on January 21st, 2010. He is such an amazing little boy and reminds me so much of his daddy. On Tuesday, March 29th, I got the phone call every wife dreads they might get.

Nick had been in an accident at work and the dart helicopter was bringing him to Dartmouth. I didnt know any details other than he was in critical condition and I had to get there immediately. Once I got there, I found out he suffered severe brain damage, swelling and fluid on his brain. The doctors tried everything that they could to save him but on that Thursday, he passed away.

Those few days at the hospital were the most horrific days of my life, I found out on that Wednesday (the day before he passed away) that I was expecting our second child and I never got the chance to tell him. When the doctors brought us into the family room to tell us, I was a complete mess. This kind of thing was only supposed to happen in the movies or on Grey’s Anatomy…not to me:( . The next comment that came out was “Have you thought about organ donation?”

UNOS: Transplant Trends, January 31, 2012

2012-01-31T08:29:00.000-08:00

UNOS

For more information: www.unos.org

Organ donation is taboo for Hispanics

2012-01-31T08:12:00.000-08:00

VOXXI

Hispanics make up a majority of the people awaiting organ transplants, yet donation rate among the group is low. The reason is tied to religious myths.

“We find that the Hispanic community tells us, ‘My religion says not to donate,’ and ‘I can’t have an open casket because the body will be damaged,’” said Esmeralda Perez of the Texas Organ Sharing Alliance, reports Reuters.

The myths are more likely to keep first and second generation Hispanics from donating as they fear disfigurement or “not being able to get into heaven because their body will not be whole.”

There are 50.5 million Hispanics in the U.S. In states like California they are the largest group on the transplant list, but only make up 14 percent of registered donors.

In 2010, Hispanics made up 31 percent of individuals who donated organs in Texas, according to Texas Organ Sharing Alliance. Nationwide Hispanics make up 45 percent of patients on the national waiting list to receive organs, reports Reuters.

Woman who asked Beiber to promote organ donation shares story

2012-01-31T08:05:00.000-08:00

CTV Canada AM

Hélène Campbell wasn't looking for fame when she posted an online video plea earlier in January to tell the world she needed a lung transplant.

But fame -- and the über-famous Justin Bieber -- found the young woman after she challenged Canadians to become donors and give the gift of life to those in need.

"Hi. My Name is Hélène. I'm 20 years old and I've recently been diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. I'm in need of a lung transplant and guys, I need your help."

With those words, and a tweet issued to Bieber for help, Campbell launched her campaign to raise awareness about her rare lung disease.

"Hey @justinbieber! I BELIEB you should use that Canadian voice of yours and help save lives like mine #beaanorgandonor beadonor.ca.ca #giveblood," Helene wrote on Jan. 19 from her Twitter account @alungstory.

That awareness grew by the millions after Bieber retweeted Campbell's message to 16.5 million Twitter followers and followed it up with a plea of his own, asking followers to help spread the word.

Doctors need to report organ transplant performances, Malaysia

2012-01-31T07:51:00.000-08:00

Deadline for public to have say on organ donation law, Wales

2012-01-31T07:48:00.000-08:00

BBC News Wales

A Welsh government consultation into presumed consent organ donation is about to end, with the findings likely to be published within a month.

It is the next stage in plans for a soft opt-out system whereby people will have to object if they want to avoid being automatically placed on the organ donation register.

The deadline for the public to have its say closes at midnight on Tuesday.

A report into the consultation could be ready by the end of February.

A bill will be introduced this year and passed in 2013, paving the way for what would be the first system of its kind in the UK.

Daughter gives dad kidney

2012-01-31T07:45:00.000-08:00

Pontiac Daily Leader | Cynthia Grau

Most children give their parents Christmas and birthday presents. Others help their parents out by giving them a lift to the store. Kelly Miller of Pontiac gave her father, Ronnie Pence, the gift of life.

Pence grew up in Missouri and moved to Pontiac in 1963 with his wife, Johnie Lou and daughter, Rhonda. Kelly was born after the move. He worked at Walker Wire and Steel for many years and is now retired. He is 67 years old.

He developed diabetes 30 years ago and although he took very good care of himself with diet and medication, the disease started taking a toll on his body. When his family and his doctors decided the best treatment was a kidney transplant, which was about two years ago, the family got to work, going through tests to see if any of them were a match.

“Both of my daughters were matches, but Rhonda had medical issues, so Kelly was a better match,” said Ronnie Pence.

Facebook app designed to help Organ Donation Awareness

2012-01-31T07:39:00.000-08:00

Environmental Communications Options

Pop Star Justin Bieber and NFL Star Tom Brady inspiration for organ donation Facebook app.

(Sudbury, CDN. January 30/12) Over 100,000 North Americans are currently waiting for a lifesaving call about organ donations. Sadly many never get the call and pass away before a suitable organ donation is found.

Thanks to the efforts of the innovative website mysendoff.com, there is now a free Facebook app called “Giving Means Living” that will raise awareness of the importance of organ donations. The “Giving Means Living” app allows Facebook members to document and share their organ donation wishes with family and friends.

According to donatelife.net, nearly 90% of North Americans support organ donation, but only 30% actually take the necessary steps to agree to it and document their wishes. With the new “Giving Means Living” app people now have an easy way to express their organ donation wishes to Facebook friends and the app also offers links to organ donor registration sites in North America.

Colin Firth, founder of mysendoff.com, observed “Giving Means Living” is designed to get people thinking, communicating and encouraging them to commit to donating their organs so that others may live. If we can help even one person waiting for an organ donation or eliminate the waiting list then we believe our efforts will be worthwhile."
Read more: http://www.huffstrategy.com/MediaManager/release/mysendoff/30-1-12/Facebook-app-designed-to-help--Organ-donation-Awareness/2456.html

Students learning about organ donation

2012-01-31T07:35:00.000-08:00

News 4 JAX Morning Show

Foundation helping students to realize importance of donating

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Three*** people die every day across the US waiting for an organ that could have saved their lives.

Organ donation can sometimes be a touchy subject but a campaign to educate teenagers about the benefits is underway at area high schools.

Students at Bishop Kenny High School are learning about organ donations and encouraging others to take part in a fundraiser called Katie's Ride for Life.

"At first when I heard it, I wasn't quite sure what I thought about it," student Maggie Magurie said.

Magurie reacted like most teenagers do the first time they hear about organ donations. Far too often teens don't realize that several peoples lives can be saved with their sacrifice.

"When the Katie Caples Foundation comes here and talks to sophomores, I think it really makes them aware about what exactly their going to sign up for and how it really affects other people if you say you are an organ donor and how it saves lives," Magurie said.
*** incorrect data: According to UNOS 18 - 20 people die every day

"Pasadena, CA 2012 Rose Parade" O-H-I-O

2012-01-31T07:27:00.000-08:00

The Ohio State University | Jan Hoover, Fan

Jeremy Doyle died in 1998 and was an organ donor with Lifeline of Ohio. There was a floragraph (a picture covered with flowers) of Jeremy on the 2012 Donate Life Float "One More Day..." in the Rose Parade.

His family (pictured) traveled to Pasadena to help decorate the float and to watch the Rose Parade. Jeremy’s floragraph is between the H and the I.

As an organ donor, Jeremy is a HERO of donation!

No transplant for dying dad who is illegal immigrant

2012-01-30T18:41:00.000-08:00

San Jose Mercury News| Hannah Dreier - Contra Costa Times

Without a new kidney, Jesus Navarro will die.

Although the Oakland man has a willing donor and private insurance to pay for the transplant, he faces an additional hurdle in the race to save his life: He is an illegal immigrant.

That fact prompted administrators at UC San Francisco Medical Center to refuse to transplant a kidney from Navarro's wife because they cannot be sure he will receive adequate follow-up care.

Their decision taps into the tension between health care and immigration policies in the state and the role medical professionals should play in trying to save the lives of undocumented residents.

Though no data are available, anecdotal evidence suggests clinics sometimes perform the transplants on illegal immigrants, especially when the patients are young. In one high-profile case, UCLA Medical Center gave an undocumened woman three liver transplants before she turned 21.

Administrators also reject patients because of their immigration status, though these patients tend to lack insurance. Bellevue Hospital in New York attracted attention last year when it refused to transplant a kidney between brothers because they could not pay for the operation.
Read more: http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_19854392

Organ donors saves lives

2012-01-30T18:07:00.000-08:00

Blacktown Sun, Australia | Nick Soon

THE Blacktown woman who donated her husband's organs after his death and made a huge difference to five lives has pledged to continue his good work.

Sarah Long's late husband James's heart, lungs, liver and eyes were donated when he died at 31 from cerebral haemorrhage three years ago.

The mother of three, a hairdresser in Beecroft, said: "Despite losing James in such tragic circumstances I am glad his legacy lives on.

"My oldest child Paityn, now 14, remembers her dad and is very proud of him but the other two were too young.

"We talk to Georgie, who's now six and Mahlee, five, about their dad.

Ms Long, also a registered organ donor, helps DonateLife by giving talks to doctors, members of the public and friends and relatives on the importance of becoming a donor.

She has spoken to doctors about how to deal with the family of the deceased, with business people at luncheons and on television and radio programs.

"It's sometimes very tough with family of the deceased but we have to convince them it is for the best.

Read more: http://www.blacktownsun.com.au/news/local/news/general/organ-donors-save-lives/2437536.aspx

Citizen of the Year a walking tribute to organ donation

2012-01-30T17:55:00.000-08:00

Shawnee Dispatch

Giving back. That’s what this year’s Shawnee Citizen of the Year award was all about.

The Shawnee Chamber of Commerce bestowed the annual award Saturday night, at the chamber’s annual dinner.

Last year’s winner, city manager Carol Gonzales, spoke of goodness and generosity when describing the 2011 Citizen of the Year, Joe Vohs, a Farmers Insurance agent who donated his kidney in December altruistically via the National Kidney Registry.

“Through this selfless act and as a result of his generosity, three individuals have already been given the life-redeeming gift of a kidney … with more yet to come,” Gonzales said. “Giving someone not just a good start, but a new start, reflects a goodness that is nothing short of amazing. Shawnee is proud to call this amazing giver our own.”

About World Kidney Day - March 12, 2012

2012-01-30T17:50:00.000-08:00

World Kidney Day

World Kidney day is a joint initiative of the International Society of Nephrology (ISN) and the International Federation of Kidney Foundations (IFKF).

Mission statement:

The mission of World Kidney Day is to raise awareness of the importance of our kidneys to our overall health and to reduce the frequency and impact of kidney disease and its associated health problems worldwide.

Our objectives are the following:
Raise awareness about our "amazing kidneys"
Highlight that diabetes and high blood pressure are key risk factors for Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD)
Encourage systematic screening of all patients with diabetes and hypertension for CKD
Encourage preventive behaviors
Educate all medical professionals about their key role in detecting and reducing the risk of CKD, particularly in high risk populations.
Stress the important role of local and national health authorities in controlling the CKD epidemic. Health authorities worldwide will have to deal with high and escalating costs if no action is taken to treat the growing number of people with CKD. On World Kidney Day all governments are encouraged to take action and invest in further kidney screening
Encourage Transplantation as a best-outcome option for kidney failure, and the act of organ donation as a life-saving initiative.

If detected early, Chronic Kidney Diseases can be treated--thereby reducing other complications and dramatically reduce the growing burden of deaths and disability from chronic renal and cardiovascular disease worldwide.

Read more: http://www.worldkidneyday.org/

Many needing transplants die for lack of donated organs

2012-01-30T17:46:00.000-08:00

Evansville Courier & Press | Byron Rhorig

As of 9 p.m. Evansville time a week ago today, the private, nonprofit contractor managing the nation's organ transplant system reported:

112,757 people were on U.S. organ transplant waiting lists;

72,420 of those were active candidates.

Members of the latter group are those who have met all qualifications of need and are of sufficient health to be good candidates for surviving transplant surgery. That means any one of them could receive a transplant this morning if a needed organ becomes available.

The same agency, known in organ donation and procurement circles as UNOS — the United Network for Organ Sharing — tallied 23,747 organ transplants from 11,716 donors between Jan. 1 and Oct. 31, 2011.

Unquestionably, many suffering end-stage organ failure are dying for lack of a donated organ to transplant. The National Network of Organ Donors, a nonprofit lobby, says 19 people, on average, succumb daily for want of a transplant, up from 14 in 1996 and 10 in 1990.

Willing donors are not that scarce. At the end of 2010, 69 percent of Hoosiers 18 or older had given consent by checking the donor box on driver's license applications. Indiana was fifth in the nation in percentage of designated organ or tissue donors, according to Donate Life America, another nonprofit.

Read more: http://www.courierpress.com/news/2012/jan/30/many-needing-transplant-die-for-lack-of-donated/?partner=yahoo_feeds

Positivity shared at candlelight vigil

2012-01-30T15:17:00.000-08:00

News-Press Now, St Joseph, Missouri | Ray Scherer

Dozens gather to remember Kecia King

Friends and family of Kecia King gathered Sunday in Midtown for a candlelight vigil aimed at building a positive legacy in her memory.

The 46-year-old St. Joseph woman was found on the side of Interstate 29 last weekend and later died. Kent Harris, 49, was arrested in Florida and is accused of involuntary manslaughter in connection with Ms. King’s death. He faces an extradition hearing today in Broward County.

Lori May — who is a relative — began the vigil at 18th and Messanie streets by reading a brief passage from the Acts of the Apostles. She also offered a prayer that asked God for strength in the days ahead. “We thank you for her spirit that remains,” she told a crowd of several dozen people. “We ask that you continue to be with us. ... Kecia gave so much love.”

Ms. King’s daughter, Chave May, said she has been spending time focusing on crafting a positive viewpoint coming from the loss. “That’s kind of the thought process I’d like everybody to take out of it,” she said. A memorial service for Ms. King was held Saturday at Brookdale Presbyterian Church. Her daughter said donated organs have already made a difference for others.

Little-known disease pushes life to the edge

2012-01-30T15:08:00.000-08:00

Ventura County Star | Tom Kisken

Karen Erickson was told she had two years to live 11 years ago.

The 45-year-old Thousand Oaks woman with lungs that work at less than 20 percent was diagnosed with a disease so little-known that the physician's assistant who delivered the news didn't get it quite right.

"She said: 'You have alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency. Your body is eating your own lungs,' " Erickson said. "She said, 'There's no cure, but if we get you on treatment, we think we could get you a couple more years.' ... I thought: What the hell?"

Today, the biotech training manager wears a black backpack for the small tank that delivers oxygen through clear tubes that hiss when she inhales. She uses two tanks when she pedals the wheels of her stationary bike at a speed that wouldn't keep her upright outdoors.
Read more: http://www.vcstar.com/news/2012/jan/29/little-known-disease-pushes-life-to-the-edge/#ixzz1kzBNV9Cs
- vcstar.com

Eighteen-year-old's organs help others

2012-01-30T15:03:00.000-08:00

Evansville Courier & Press | Bryon Rohrig

The envelope arrived at Glenda and Jim Ralph's Evansville home the day after Thanksgiving of 2009, mailed by a social worker at the Indiana University Medical Center in Indianapolis.

When Glenda opened it, a card fell out. Tucked inside was a photograph of a young man whose face she had never seen. But she had no doubt about to whom it belonged.

"My family and I hope your recovery is going well," the note began. "You are in our thoughts every day. It helped me to know that Timothy was able to help you and that part of him is still with us.
Read more: http://www.courierpress.com/news/2012/jan/30/lifesaving-gifts/
Photo: MOLLY BARTELS / COURIER & PRESS Glenda Ralph closes the box where she keeps her kidney donor information at her home in Evansville. Timothy Hasamear died in an ATV accident in 2009. Ralph was on a waiting list for a kidney when Timothy's, which was a good match for her, became available. She later met Timothy's family

Teenager days from death has life-saving double lung transplant after spending 10 years in hosital

2012-01-30T14:51:00.000-08:00

The Daily Mail, UK | Sadie Whitelocks

A teenager who was planning her own funeral is enjoying a new lease of life thanks to a life-saving double lung transplant.

Casey Blunstone,16, was told by doctors that she had just days to live as cystic fibrosis had caused her lung function to drop to dangerous levels.

For the past ten years she had been confined to hospital as a result of her debilitating condition and operated on twenty times.

Using social media for organ transplants

2012-01-30T14:48:00.000-08:00

9 News NBC, Colorado

THORNTON - The gift of another day is something many of us take for granted. That gift was something 24-year-old Ryan Malloy didn't think he was going to get.

"Every night, I would pray that I would wake up the next morning," Malloy said.

He was just 20 years old when he was diagnosed with Goodpasture Disease - a rare illness that shuts down the kidneys and fills the lungs with blood.

Malloy needed a kidney, but no one in his immediate family was a match.

"As a mother, I was in a dark place. You usually can kiss your kids boo-boo's away, and I couldn't make this go away," Malloy's mom, Angie Hernandez, said.

Two months after renal-kidney failure, Ryan was put on the donor list for a kidney, but the wait was three to four years.
Read more: http://www.9news.com/news/article/245910/222/Using-social-media-for-organ-transplants

North Carolina inmate wants to donate kidney, eye

2012-01-30T14:44:00.000-08:00

News Observer | Josh Schaffer

TILLERY -- When he was 20, Dalton Windley fetched a .22-caliber rifle from his car, aimed it from the hip and fired a single shot at Glenn Brame from about 150 yards, catching the young man in the neck.

They'd been arguing over a girl. Windley knows it doesn't matter, but he insists he didn't mean to kill. Those few seconds of wildness got him a life sentence in prison and, after nearly 20 years, he doesn't expect to get out.

Prison gives a man plenty of time to think, and the way Windley looks at it, his life is a waste. One big nothing. He took a man's life, robbed a little girl of her daddy. Not only that, but he ran from the crime scene, then from the police, who caught him fleeing into the Beaufort County woods.

So nearing age 40, he'd like give his life some small purpose. If he can't do it as a free man, he'd like to try it behind bars. Windley's hope: donate a kidney and one blue eye, while he's still living.
Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/01/30/1816775/inmates-code-an-eye-for-an-eye.html#storylink=cpy

Urging Hispanics to donate organs: Mom turns son's tragedy into fight for gift of life

2012-01-30T14:40:00.000-08:00

New York Daily News | Erica Pearson

WHEN DOCTORS told Yolany Veliz her son was brain dead after a hit-and-run car accident, she wanted to take the 16-year-old off a ventilator and donate his organs.

She got unexpected grief from fellow immigrants in her Long Island neighborhood who believed myths about organ donation, like doctors selling body parts.

“So many people told me not to do it,” said Veliz, 38, who ignored the naysayers and let her son’s organs be harvested.

“But it really helps me to know that he lives on in others.”

Veliz, who is from Honduras and lives in Hempstead, is starting a foundation and website — www.oscarvelizfundation — to encourage other Latin American immigrants to consider organ donation.

Julia Rivera of the New York Organ Donor Network said Hispanic enrollment in the state registry of willing donors is low.
Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/mom-yolany-veliz-turns-son-tragedy-fight-gift-life-urging-hispanics-donate-organs-article-1.1013798#ixzz1kz4EE255

Coach Jay Continues to Touch Lives

2012-01-29T13:09:00.000-08:00

Kennesaw Patch | Gaetana Pipia

The Kennesaw Charter teacher who died Friday after being struck by a vehicle has helped others through organ donation.

In life, Jay Ingram touched many lives in the Kennesaw community as a youth soccer coach, a physical education teacher at Kennesaw Charter Science and Math Academy, and a loving husband and father of two.

In death, he continues to help others through the gift of organ donation.

Ingram, 32, was struck by a vehicle Thursday morning while jogging on North Booth Road in Kennesaw. He died Friday at 3:30 p.m. due to complications from a severe traumatic brain injury.

Ingram donated all his organs, according to an update posted on Facebook Saturday morning by Ingram's wife, Corinne:

His heart is going to a fifty year old, his lungs to a 27 year old, a kidney and liver to a patient with liver failure, a kidney and pancreas to a patient with diabetes/kidney failure. I pray that everything goes well for these recipients and amazed that even in death Jay is saving lives. God you are amazing.
Read more: http://kennesaw.patch.com/articles/coach-jay-continues-to-touch-lives

Gift of life stories shared at Univerity of Dayton Game

2012-01-29T12:53:00.000-08:00

WDTN NBC 2, Dayton, Ohio

DAYTON, Ohio (WDTN) - There was a special halftime show for Flyer fans at the University of Dayton arena Saturday night. Three Dayton-area families were honored with their toddlers, who each had been given the gift of life with the help of a stranger through Life Connection of Ohio.

Mya Kendrick, now 22-months, was born with a heart defect. She waited sedated and on a ventilator for 9 weeks before receiving a heart transplant at just 10 weeks old.

"We saw her laying in a hospital bed dying and counting the days not knowing what tomorrow would bring," said parents Morgan and Lora. "Then we got that phone call saying our little girl is going to live."

Noelle Hope Wingate was born April 28, 2010. At three months old, she was diagnosed with biliary atresia. She was in liver failure, and without a transplant was given three months to live,
Read more and view video: http://www.wdtn.com/dpp/news/gift-of-life-stories-shared-at-ud-game

Nurse donates kidney to patient

2012-01-29T12:48:00.000-08:00

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution | Helena Oliverio

Allison Batson gives a pep talk to the recent Auburn University graduate, new to her floor at the hospital.

Clay Taber faces a rare illness ravaging his kidneys. He’s just 22 years old.

“How are you feeling?” the nurse asks. “Can I do anything for you? If you ever want to talk, let me know.”

In him, Batson sees flashes of her own son. They quickly bond.

Taber talks about his girlfriend; he’s about to put a down payment on a ring.

This is no way for him to start his married life, Batson, a nurse at Emory University Hospital, and mother to four children, thinks to herself. He won’t even be able to go on a honeymoon.

Without a kidney transplant, Batson knows, Taber will need three-times-a-week dialysis, severely limiting his quality of life.
Read more: http://www.ajc.com/news/nurse-donates-kidney-to-1321444.html

A Message to Ellen Degeneres and Oprah Winfrey

2012-01-28T09:22:00.000-08:00

Organ and Tissue Donation Blog

Dear Ellen, Oprah,

No doubt you have heard that Justin Beiber has and continue to help pump life into Ontario Canada's organ donation registry by tweeting to his fans and followers. In less than one week his tweet has encouraged over 1,500 to register as an organ, eye and tissue donor.

In behalf of the over 112,500 Americans on the transplant wait-list waiting for a life-saving transplant will you help us by issuing a simple TWEET to your followers to register as an organ donor at www.donatelife.net?

Your tweet and endorsement will certainly inspire many to register their wishes.
Thank you in advance for your help in this life-saving endeavor.

Heart Transplant gives Lady's Island girl new lease on life

2012-01-28T09:09:00.000-08:00

The Island Packet | Prentiss Findlay

Morgan Porter's new heart began beating in the pre-dawn darkness Wednesday.
The 3-year-old girl from Lady's Island received the organ in surgery at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. It was donated by the family of a child with a head injury.

"Luckily, this heart is a very good match. She's doing well," said Dr. Minoo Kavarana, the transplant surgeon.

Morgan had been kept alive since last summer by a mechanical pump known as a "Berlin Heart." It's a ventricular-assist device that uses external pumps to take blood directly from the atria and pump it to the lungs and the body, thereby taking the load off the heart's ventricles. Removing the device was more difficult than usual because much scar tissue had formed around it during the six months it was in place, he said.

Morgan's father is Marine Corps Maj. Robert Porter, a fighter pilot who served in Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation New Dawn.
Read more here: http://www.islandpacket.com/2012/01/27/1944074/heart-transplant-gives-ladys-island.html#storylink=cpy

Waiting for a Heart

2012-01-28T09:00:00.000-08:00

The Ledger | Robin Williams Adams

LAKELAND - Dianne Harney thought she had beaten the odds when she became a five-year breast cancer survivor, though she had an ongoing lack of energy.

Shifted back and forth between doctors specializing in the heart and the lung, she became increasingly frustrated.

“I started getting so tired,” said Harney, who was working then in the Polk County Emergency Medical Services' business office.

“I'd get up tired and go to bed tired.”

A trip to Gainesville for another opinion brought an unwelcome diagnosis:

Her heart was enlarged and weakened, which has given her congestive heart failure. It stems from chemotherapy she had for her breast cancer, said Dr. Daniel F. Pauly, her transplant cardiologist at Shands Hospital at the University of Florida.
Read more: http://www.theledger.com/article/20120128/NEWS/120129676

Heart recipient thanks donor's family, flown in from S. America

2012-01-28T08:57:00.000-08:00

FOX 13 PARK CITY UTAH | Aaron Vaughn

PARK CITY, Utah—Family and friends of a Paraguayan woman who was killed in an accident in Park City just before the holidays, returned to Utah Friday to meet the woman who received her heart.

Gabriela Caballero-Lopez's life was cut short when she was hit and killed in an accident in Park City. Now, her memory lives on in the minds of her friends and family and in the heart of one woman who "Gabby" gave the ultimate gift of life to.

“She was a really wonderful person and her heart was so big that she was able to donate her organs to give life to other people,” says Gabby’s friend Fabio Delgado.

“Gabby,” as friends called her, donated her heart to a Salt Lake woman, Allyson Gamble, who is now able to take care of her young son.
Read more: http://www.fox13now.com/news/local/kstu-heart-donation-heart-donor-thanks-victims-family-flown-in-from-s-america-20120127,0,4873256.story

Athlete was an inspiration to family, community

2012-01-28T08:51:00.000-08:00

Houma Today | Brent St. Germain

LAROSE — Troy and Angie Danos will always cherish a message from their 17-year-old son.

“Through all of the bad and good times, all of the bad doctor visits, the surgeries and everything else that happened in my life, I wouldn't change it for anything else,” Dylan Danos wrote prior to having a double-lung transplant on Aug. 3 at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston.

Dylan needed the surgery because of breathing problems associated with cystic fibrosis, a disease he had battled since he was 3 months old.

Though the surgery gave Dylan a new lease on life, allowing him to return to the swimming pool and compete in a district meet for the South Lafourche High School swim team, his battle with the disease came to an end Jan. 5.

“We would have liked more time with him, but unfortunately, that wasn't meant to be,” Troy said. “It's been lonely without him. That is the worst part.”

Dylan developed a viral infection in his lungs Dec. 4 and was taken to Texas Children's Hospital next day. Two days later, he was placed on a ventilator and stayed on it until his death.
Read more: http://www.houmatoday.com/article/20120128/ARTICLES/120129602/-1/sports?Title=Athlete-was-an-inspiration-to-family-community

Prescott Valley woman gets ultimate gift from daughter - a new kidney

2012-01-28T08:47:00.000-08:00

The Republic, Columbus Indiana | Cindy Barks

PRESCOTT, Ariz. — For more than 30 years, Joan Joanou has been imparting her fighting spirit to the stream of students passing through her tae kwon do and other fitness classes.

A "5th dan" black belt in tae kwon do, Joanou spent months during her teens competing in the martial art in South Korea, before moving to the tri-city area in 1981 and focusing on fitness instruction.

"I was very competitive, and I didn't lose any fights," Joanou, 56, recalls with a laugh.

Now, her fight has turned inward.

Five years ago, doctors diagnosed the Prescott Valley woman with chronic kidney failure. She dealt for years with the debilitating effects, before learning just recently that the deterioration was accelerating.

It was time, the doctors said, to begin dialysis, and ultimately, to consider a kidney transplant.
Read more: http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/9ec13ab66df540cebe671666368a6394/AZ--Organ-Donation/

Bieber pumps life into Ontario organ donations - 1500 on-line registrations!

2012-01-27T17:24:00.000-08:00

CTV News | Matthew Coutts

A rally cry from Justin Bieber asking fans to become organ donors has done wonders for Ontario's Trillium Gift of Life Network, which has seen a boost in registrations from people offering to become organ donors since the plea was made last week.

Bieber, who frequently makes hearts throb, turned his attention toward other organs when he responded to an Ottawa woman's request for help.

Helena Campbell, 20, has been diagnosed with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis – a rare lung disorder that requires a transplant. She has moved to Toronto for treatment and is on a waiting list for new organs.

Campbell has kept an account of her experiences on www.alungstory.com and has been trying to rally support for organ donations across the province.

Last week, Campbell and her friends came up with a plan to draw Bieber into the campaign by contacting him en masse through Twitter.

"Hey @justinbieber! I BELIEB you should use that Canadian voice of yours and help save lives like mine #beanorgandonor beadonor.ca #giveblood," Helene wrote from her Twitter account @alungstory.

The star from Stratford, Ont., forwarded her message to his 16.5 million Twitter followers, and followed it up with a plea of his own, asking followers to help spread the word.

Trillium Gift of Life Network, which operates the beadonor.ca website, saw an immediate spike in traffic to the website and an explosion in online registration.

The health network has received some 1,500 online registrations since Campbell began her campaign last Thursday. That is more than four times the amount the network usually receives.

The Trillium Gift of Life Network says there are about 1,500 people in Ontario awaiting a life-saving organ donation, plus more waiting for tissue transplants.

Multiple organ transplant gives Nikki LeFebre hope for the future

2012-01-27T17:19:00.000-08:00

KSDK Channel 5 | Kristen Gosling

(WTHR) -- Nikki LeFebre is a huge Packers fan from Wisconsin. She wanted to see her team come to Indianapolis for the Super Bowl.

Instead, she came to Indianapolis last weekend and won a bigger victory - when she found luck on a list.

LeFebre married her high school sweetheart in October.

In December, it turned into a nightmare as she was diagnosed with sepsis for the 18th time in two years.

"My husband just broke down crying and he goes, 'I just have this bad feeling you are going to die,'" LeFebre said.

Her father has watched on helplessly over the last five years as Nikki's health deteriorated.

Donate Life Ambassador Writes Book About Transplant Experience

2012-01-27T17:13:00.000-08:00

LifeLine of Ohio

Diane Tefft Young says she is humbled by the gift she received from her lung donor. She was so humbled, in fact, that she was inspired to share the experience.

“I was so grateful because I was so close to dying,” said Diane.

Encouraged by an editor friend, she began to write. Six months and many tears later, the result is the central Ohioan’s first book: “Humbled by the Gift of Life.” It will be released in mid-February 2012.

Diane, who received her lung transplant in October 2010, felt she had to tell her story.

“In my heart I believe I was allowed to live to write this,” said Diane. “I had so much amazing help,” she says of the many friends who reviewed, edited and provided feedback on the project.

Read more: http://www.lifelineofohio.org/2012/01/donate-life-ambassador-writes-book-about-transplant-experience/

Alex O'Loughlin Fans for Donate Life: Valentine's Day Donor Registration Drive

2012-01-27T17:08:00.000-08:00

Alex O'Loughlin Fans for Donate Life

Offer Someone Your Heart This Valentine's Day

Starting February 1st until Valentine's Day on the 14th, the Alex O'Loughlin Fans for Donate Life will be running a two week organ donor registration drive. Sign up to become an organ donor, and offer someone your heart this Valentine's Day.

For U.S. state by state donation registrations click here: http://donatelife.net/register-now/

For Australian registrations click here: https://www2.medicareaustralia.gov.au:448/pext/registerAodr/Pages/DonorRegistration.jsp
Read more and learn how to register in your area: http://www.alexoloughlinfansfordonatelife.com/2012/01/valentines-day-donor-registration-drive.html

X Games Sarah Burke Tribute

2012-01-27T17:01:00.000-08:00

Freestyle TV

Family, friends and fellow athletes gathered to honor and remember Sarah with a candlelight vigil in the SuperPipe

To watch: http://www.freestyletv.net/xgames/x-games-sarah-burke-tribute/

Lung Transplant Recipient Prepares For 10th Hancock Climb

2012-01-27T08:19:00.000-08:00

CBS Chicago

CHICAGO (CBS) — Next month, more than 4,000 people will climb 94 floors all the way to the top of the John Hancock Center to raise money for breathing problems, and one man knows what it’s like to gasp for air.

As CBS 2’s Susan Carlson reports, Steve Ferkau is getting ready for his 10th climb this year, and he proves the sky is truly the limit.

“I have cystic fibrosis,” Ferkau said. “It’s a genetic disease that I was born with.”

Ferkau struggled to breathe until he had a double lung transplant in 2000. Despite his challenges, for the past nine years he’s managed to reach the top at the Hustle up the Hancock.

But he’s not in it for the notoriety, or even the fact that he’s raised more $250,000 for the Respiratory Health Association.

“I’ve always done this to tell people about Kari,” Ferkau said.

Kari Westberg is the 17-year-old girl whose lungs Ferkau now uses to breathe. The day before her junior prom, the Iowa girl died of an aneurysm.
Read more: http://chicago.cbslocal.com/2012/01/27/lung-transplant-recipient-prepares-for-10th-hancock-climb/

Tennessee man with wife's kidney blames Vanderbilt for organ decline

2012-01-27T08:13:00.001-08:00

The Tennessean | Tom Wilemon

Sandy Thornton looks at her husband of 35 years with the sad knowledge that the kidney she gave him is dying.

“Vanderbilt has murdered that kidney,” she said.

She blames the pill that a nephrologist from Vanderbilt University Medical Center prescribed. Vanderbilt contends that no medical mistakes occurred in the course of Dan Thornton’s treatment and that it “met or exceeded the standard of care.”

The Thorntons tried to sue, but they ran into barriers. So they went beyond the courts. They filed complaints with Medicare, the United Network for Organ Sharing, the Joint Commission and the Tennessee Department of Health. The Tennessee legislature has passed tort reform laws in recent years that make it more difficult to file malpractice suits.

But complaints like the ones the Thorntons just filed could also put financial penalties on hospitals. The federal government is pushing for transparency and accountability to lower health-care costs. If it determines hospitals make mistakes with Medicare and Medicaid patients, it won’t pay the hospital bills.

“Medicare considers him a million-dollar man,” Sandy Thornton said. “They have paid out nearly $1 million for our transplant and also $400,000 to keep him alive for three months.”
Read more: http://www.tennessean.com/article/20120127/NEWS07/301270075/TN-man-wife-s-kidney-blames-Vanderbilt-organ-decline?odyssey=tab%7Ctopnews%7Ctext%7CFRONTPAGE

Temple Hospital to resume heart and lung transplants

2012-01-27T08:10:00.000-08:00

Philadelphia Inquirer | Stacey Burling

Temple University Hospital announced Thursday that it had reactivated its heart-, lung-, and heart/lung-transplant programs.

The hospital stopped performing lung transplants in May, after its primary lung-transplant surgeon left. It deactivated its heart-transplant program in July because of low patient volume.

Since then, it has recruited T. Sloan Guy as chief of cardiothoracic surgery and Yoshiya Toyoda as director of heart and lung transplantation and mechanical circulatory support.

Guy said the United Network of Organ Sharing, a nonprofit that manages the U.S. organ-transplant system, gave the hospital interim approval to restart the transplant programs earlier this week.

Before the deactivation, Temple's heart-transplant program had averaged five transplants a year, half the number needed to meet federal quality standards. The Pennsylvania Department of Health had said the lung program had a lower-than-expected survival rate.

Read more: http://www.philly.com/philly/business/138174974.html#ixzz1kfwhA24S

New system safe, effective in delivering CsA to organ transplant patients

2012-01-27T08:06:00.000-08:00

News Medical

A new system for delivering a drug to organ transplant patients, which could avoid the risk of harmful side effects, is being developed by scientists at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow.

The drug, cyclosporine (CsA), is widely used in transplant operations and helps prevent the patient's body rejecting the organ but it can cause adverse drug reactions, of which the most serious problems are kidney and liver damage, in the doses which are currently administered in the long term.

The gap between a safe, effective dose of the treatment and a toxic dose is extremely narrow but the Strathclyde scientists have found a way of capturing CsA in very small amounts. The new system, developed in laboratory tests, enables nanoparticles of the drug to be delivered orally so that the strength of the dose can be maintained, but at a level and in a form which spares kidneys from damage.

Professor Ravi Kumar, of the Strathclyde Institute of Pharmacy and Biomedical Sciences, led the research. He said: "CsA is very useful in transplants and treating conditions such as arthritis, lupus and some forms of diabetes, but we need to address the risks it can present to the kidney and liver, apart from various other toxicities such as convulsions and high blood pressure.

"The damage it can cause can be dealt with if it's caught at an early stage but can be irreversible if it continues unchecked. Furthermore, existing formulations of cyclosporine contain castor oil-based vehicle which is used owing to the drug's poor solubility in water but which can be toxic.

'Mad Cow' and Other Prion Diseases Hide Out in Spleen

2012-01-27T08:01:00.000-08:00

Scientific American | Jo Marchant of Nature Magazine

The research suggests there are more people infected in lymphoid tissues, who may never develop the disease but could still infect others via blood transfusions or organ donations.

Prion diseases such as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) and variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (vCJD) are able to jump species much more easily than previously thought. A study published in Science today shows that in mice, prions introduced from other species can replicate in the spleen without necessarily affecting the brain.

The study reinforces the concern that thousands of people in the United Kingdom might be silent carriers of prion infection, potentially able to pass a lethal form of the disease to others through surgery or blood transfusions.

Prions are infectious pathogens, primarily composed of the misfolded form of a protein called PrP. Normal PrP molecules that are converted into the misshapen type then aggregate in the brain to form hard, insoluble clumps -- with fatal consequences.
Read more: http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=mad-cow-prion-diseases-hide-spleen

Patriots' Tom Brady on Mission to Help Mentor

2012-01-27T07:37:00.000-08:00

ABC News | Lara Salahi

Retired football coach Tom Martinez, 66, says if there's ever a key to success on the field, it's this: don't quit.

"I tell the kids I don't care who it is, I don't care where we go, I don't care where we play, we don't whine about officials calls, we don't whine about weather conditions," said Martinez. "You play hard and you play right to the end."

He's credited for grooming many successful athletes including New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady.

Now Martinez, who coached the College of San Mateo until 2005 when he retired because of his health problems, is putting his own words to play.
Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/Wellness/patriots-tom-brady-helps-mentor-find-kidney-donor/story?id=15449400#.TyLEFZjA1RE

Kidney Donor Gives Organ to Stranger

2012-01-27T07:34:00.000-08:00

ABC News | Susan Donaldson James

Celia Oyler had never been in the hospital, never had a stitch and had never even taken a prescription drug.

But last June, the 55-year-old professor gave doctoral student John Young -- a virtual stranger -- her kidney, enduring every invasive test and eventually transplant surgery to save his life.

As Oyler tells it, her decision was rooted in compassion but executed on a whim last spring in the hallways of Teachers College Columbia University.

Oyler, director of inclusive education programs, is a white lesbian. Young, 49, is African-American and had just completed his doctorate in curriculum and teaching when they found they were a match last spring.
Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/kidney-donor-meets-virtual-stranger-whim-gift-life/story?id=15449607#.TyLDaZjA1RE

Tanya O'Rourke and her surgeons talk about her recent kidney donation

2012-01-26T18:14:00.000-08:00

WCPO ABC 9

CINCINNATI - Tanya O'Rourke's recent kidney donation changed one woman's life for the better, and you can change someone's life too.

Catch up with Tanya and the surgeons that took care of her donation and the questions they answered about the experience and organ donation in general in the chat below.

Read more watch replay: http://www.wcpo.com/dpp/story_hold/chat-live-with-tanya-orourke-and-her-surgeons-about-her-recent-kidney-donation#ixzz1kcYJc2is

Caffeine toxicity from energy drinks cited in Anais Fournier's death

2012-01-26T18:08:00.000-08:00

The Record Herald | Denis Bonura

Fourteen-year-old Anais Fournier was drinking energy drinks at the mall with her friends on Dec. 16.
Six days later, the South Hagerstown High School student was pronounced brain dead. Her death certificate lists the cause as a heart arrhythmia due to caffeine toxicity. Anais drank four Monster energy drinks in less than 24 hours.

Cardiac arrest

She went into cardiac arrest inside of her Hagerstown home on Dec. 17, according to her mother, Wendy Crossland of Hagerstown.

“She was at the mall with her friends the night before, and they had a dare to see who could drink the most,” Crossland said. “She drank about three that night, even though she knew I do not allow them because I know they are bad for you. She had another one the next day at the mall, and went into cardiac arrest three hours later at home. I just want people to know these drinks are considered dietary supplements and are not regulated by the FDA. These drinks are dangerous, especially for teenagers.”

She was flown to Baltimore’s Johns Hopkins Hospital from Meritus Medical Center where doctors induced a coma to keep her brain from swelling.

Tests showed a complete lack of oxygen to Anais’ brain and she never regained consciousness. She was pronounced brain dead on Dec. 22. Her family said they donated her organs because of her love of all people and because Anais felt organ donation should be required of everyone.
Read more: http://www.therecordherald.com/news/x364060147/Caffeine-toxicity-from-energy-drinks-cited-in-Anais-Fourniers-death
PARENTS, PLEASE BEWARE OF ENERGY DRINKS! I HAVE PERSONALLY BEEN ON ORGAN REFERRALS AND DONOR CASES WHERE ENERGY DRINKS WERE THE CAUSE OF DEATH. THIS IS NOT TO BE TAKEN LIGHTLY.

Rabbi gave his kidney to a stranger - with love

2012-01-26T17:55:00.000-08:00

The Jewish Chronicle | Jennifer Lipman

A father-of-three, who had not even had a general anaesthetic until two weeks ago, is recovering after donating his kidney to an Israeli stranger.

Chabad rabbi Avi Richler, 29, who lives in New Jersey, had never considered donating an organ before last summer, when an article on a Jewish news website, about an Israeli's desperate need for a transplant, caught his eye.

"I had an epiphany," said the rabbi, whose wife is expecting their fourth child any day now. "It was about a 48-year-old man who had three kids, like me. That was what really hit me."
Read more: http://www.thejc.com/news/world-news/62604/rabbi-gave-his-kidney-a-stranger-love

Officer Moore Honored As Role Model Year After Death

2012-01-26T17:52:00.000-08:00

RTV ABC 6, Indianapolis

INDIANAPOLIS -- The family of Officer David Moore marked one year since his death Thursday, thanking the community for their continuing support.

Moore was shot the morning of Jan. 23, 2011, during a traffic stop on Indianapolis' north side.

When it became apparent that Moore wouldn't survive his injuries, his parents, retired Lt. Spencer Moore and Sgt. Jo Moore, honored their son's wishes and donated his vital organs.

"I just want to share that I appreciate the support of everyone, the city and that big blue family," Jo Moore said at Thursday's memorial. "I couldn't do it without you guys. Thank you so much."

Read more and watch telecast: http://www.theindychannel.com/news/30308542/detail.html

More Malaysians willing to donate organs

2012-01-26T17:48:00.000-08:00

The Star

The report “Policy on living organ donations lacks publicity ” (The Star, Jan 26) gives the mistaken impression that living organ donation from non-relatives is now encouraged, which would be a change from the previous policy. This is not so.

Cadaveric donation still remains the preferred choice for source of organs for transplant.

While living donations are viable options for patients requiring kidney or liver transplant, emphasis has always been on related donors, that is from among close family members or spouses.

Non-related donation is not encouraged but is allowed when there is no cadaveric or suitable living family donor and there is no alternative therapy other than transplant to sustain or prolong the patient’s life.

In such a situation, doctors looking after the patients requiring the transplant can now refer to the recently published “Unrelated Living Organ Donation – Policy and Procedures” for guidance to assist them in getting the appropriate authorisation from the Unrelated Transplant Approval Committee (UTAC).
Read more: http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/1/27/focus/10547938&sec=focus

Alex O'Loughlin Fans for Donate Life - Christmas Campaign Results and Presentation

2012-01-26T17:41:00.000-08:00

Alex O'Loughlin Fans for Donate Life

Sincere thanks once again to all who participated in our annual Christmas campaign. All told in excess of $250 was raised, with the money going towards two very worthwhile organisations, both dedicated to raising awareness of organ donation, and supporting the transplant community, Taylor's Gift and Zaidee's Rainbow Foundation.

An official presentation, in the form of a .PDF and Word file has been passed onto Alex's publicist, Rachael Wesolowski, as well as Allan Turner, Founder and CEO of Zaidee's Rainbow Foundation, and Todd Storch, Founder and President of Taylor's Gift. With much thanks to Todd Storch as well, the presentation has also been forwarded onto Diana Jackson, Alex's personal assistant.
Read more: http://www.alexoloughlinfansfordonatelife.com/2012/01/christmas-campaign-results-and.html
WE AT ORGAN AND TISSUE BLOG WANT TO THANK THE GREAT FOLKS AT ALEX O'LOUGHLIN FANS FOR DONATE LIFE FOR THEIR TIRELESS EFFORTS IN RAISING AWARENESS FOR THE CRITICAL NEED OF ORGAN, EYE AND TISSUE DONORS. PLEASE CONTINUE TO VISIT THEIR WEB SITE AND SUPPORT THEIR ENDEAVORS.

GIFT OF HOPE ORGAN & TISSUE DONOR NETWORK NAMES SAN JOSE PUBLIC RELATIONS AS TOTAL MARKET COMMUNICATIONS PARTNER

2012-01-26T17:35:00.000-08:00

San Jose Public Relations

Building upon its initial relationship which started in 2009, Gift of Hope Organ & Tissue Donor Network has named San Jose Public Relations (SJPR) as its total market communications agency of record for 2012. The effort will consist of strategic planning, media relations and community relations to build awareness around Gift of Hope and to inspire people to save lives as registered organ and tissue donors.

As a not-for-profit organ procurement organization, Gift of Hope is one of 58 non-profit agencies that make up the nation’s organ donation system. Gift of Hope coordinates organ and tissue donation and provides donor family services and public education in Illinois and northwest Indiana.

“Gift of Hope has made great strides in the Latino market with SJPR and we are excited to increase our collaboration in the coming year,” said David Bosch, communications director for Gift of Hope.

The additional responsibilities follow a successful year of media presence for Gift of Hope in the general, African American and Hispanic markets in the Chicagoland area. SJPR led media relations for several initiatives including National Minority Donor Awareness Day which seeks to raise awareness of the urgent need for donors and transplants within the multicultural community. Most recently, SJPR completed its most successful campaign to date for Gift of Hope regarding the featured rider that was selected to represent the organization on the Donate Life float in the 2012 Rose Parade®.
Read more: http://blog.thesanjosegroup.com/?p=941

Tom Brady connects with organ donor matchup site

2012-01-26T08:28:00.000-08:00

Boston Business Journal | Julie M. Donnelly

Superbowl-bound New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady is taking some time out from practice to urge people to sign up to be an organ donor on Matchingdonors.com.

Brady has a personal stake in raising awareness about organ donation - he’s hoping Canton, Mass-based Matchingdonors.com will be able to identify a donor for one of his mentors, Tom Martinez.

Martinez, 68, a quarterback coach in California, has worked with Brady since his youth, and is in need of a kidney transplant. So far, a match has not been found.

“Toms a great guy and has given us great visibility,” Paul Dooley, CEO of MatchingDonors.com, said in a statement. Dooley said nineteen people die every day in the United States waiting for a kidney transplant, most waiting 7 to 9 years. He said the average patient gets their transplant through MatchingDonors.com within six months of signing up on the website.
Read more: http://www.bizjournals.com/boston/news/2012/01/26/tom-brady-boosts-canton-organ-donor.html

'What do I need to do?'

2012-01-26T08:21:00.000-08:00

Times Record News-Wichita| Ann Work

Dallas resident Pam Silvestri, who handles organ donations in Wichita Falls, believes there's one reason why God gave human beings two kidneys when they need only one: So they can give one away.

One year ago she complied by donating a kidney to a co-worker.

In the process, she learned many little-known facts about organ donation that surprised her, even though she had worked for 15 years with Southwest Transplant Alliance, the organ donation agency that serves Wichita Falls hospitals.

When she was hired by the Alliance in 1995, kidney donation was not easy — or popular — like it is today, she said.

But eventually she met so many people who donated their kidneys that it became commonplace to her.

"I saw it was no big deal. People did it all the time," she said.

Then one day a woman who worked part-time for the Alliance and who had become a close friend told her that she would be missing some work days because her daughter was ill, having not found a kidney, and that she, too, would soon need one.
Read more: http://www.timesrecordnews.com/news/2012/jan/26/what-do-i-need-to-do/?partner=yahoo_feeds

Kidney transplant set to give Ingleby Barwick mum old life back

2012-01-26T08:15:00.000-08:00

Evening Gazette | Laura Woodcock

“You’ve already stolen our heart, what’s one more organ?”

These are the words Claire Neal heard when she found out her cousin Peter would give her the best gift anyone could - a kidney.

Mum-of-two Claire has kidney failure and her health has gone downhill since her diagnosis 18 months ago.

“I just cried when Peter said that”, said Claire, 35.

Now, she is looking forward to the future and wants to raise awareness about how important organ donation is.

Claire, who lives in Ingleby Barwick with husband Rob, 33, Hannah, five, and Liam, 16, said: “I am looking forward to taking my daughter to the park and being able to do things others may take for granted.

Read More http://www.gazettelive.co.uk/news/teesside-news/2012/01/26/kidney-transplant-set-to-give-ingleby-barwick-mum-old-life-back-84229-30199244/#ixzz1ka7MQIkv

Doctor given 3-yr jail term for receiving kidney via illegal trade - Japan

2012-01-26T08:11:00.000-08:00

The Mainichi Daily News

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- A 56-year-old Tokyo doctor was sentenced Thursday to three years in prison for buying a kidney which he received in a transplant operation.

The Tokyo District Court also gave a 30-month jail term to Noriko Horiuchi, the 48-year-old wife of the doctor Toshinobu Horiuchi, for conspiring with her husband to arrange the buying of the kidney, in violation of the organ transplant law.

The doctor, who suffered from kidney failure, paid 8 million yen to a 48-year-old female intermediary in exchange for receiving the organ from a 21-year-old unemployed man in July 2010, according to the ruling.

Presiding Judge Atsuo Wakazono said the couple's act "impaired the principle of equality for organ transplants."
Read more: http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20120126p2g00m0dm125000c.html

Organ donor bill stalls - Virginia

2012-01-26T08:07:00.000-08:00

The News Leader | Dave Ress

A bill to require 30 minutes of instruction in driver's education classes on organ donation is dying a quiet death in the General Assembly.

Del. Richard P. "Dickie" Bell's bill was inspired by a campaign by Turner Ashby High School student Maddie Shinaberry, whose life was saved by a lung transplant, and who has been trying to raise awareness of the need for organs for donation.

But the House of Delegates' Students and Early Education Committee recommended "laying the bill on the table," a polite way of saying no, without formally killing it.

Bell, R-Staunton, said Wednesday that he'll work with the Richmond-based United Network for Organ Sharing, the nonprofit that administers the nation's organ transplant system, and other groups trying to expand the number of organs available for transplant on introducing curriculum changes through the state education department.
Read more: http://www.newsleader.com/article/20120126/NEWS01/201260315

Donor organs are often needlessly 'lost'

2012-01-26T08:04:00.000-08:00

Radio Netherlands

Many potential donor organs are needlessly 'lost' because often it's not known whether or not a person wished to make their organs available after death. That's apparent from research published on Thursday by Utrecht University on behalf of the Dutch Transplant Foundation.

According to the researchers more than half of the Dutch population aged 18 years and older are not registered in the donor registry. In these cases their relatives decide whether to donate their organs after death.

''Often families choose not to allow organ donation because they don't know the wishes of the deceased," says researcher Loes Smeijers of Utrecht University. ''Agreeing to organ donation when the deceased may not have wanted it makes then feel uncomfortable."

According to researchers there are currently 1300 people in the Netherlands on the waiting list for an organ. 800 of them are waiting for a kidney.

''It's unfortunate that potentially good organs are often lost because it's not known whether or not the deceased wanted to donate an organ," said Ms Smeijers. ''People should be encouraged to make an informed choice."

© Radio Netherlands Worldwide

Donate Life Organ and Tissue Donation Blog (sm)

The skilled hands of a lost husband hold out hope for a tenacious artist

Donor, recipient share unbreakable bond

Save Lives; Become an Organ Donor

9-year-old receives 6 organ donations at one time

Cornation Street star joins organ donation plea

Black History Month - Dr. Samuel Lee Kountz - Pioneer of Organ Transplant Surgery - Performed First Kidney Transplant

Organ donations an issue for multicultural Australia

Heart transplant teen thanks blood donors

Is Denial of Life-Saving Care for Mentally Disabled Girl a Sign of Things to Come?

Thank to a heart transplant, A Tennessee Family will Celebrate a Very Special Valentine's Day

Dallas Mom to donate her kidney for her stricken toddler Jace Glenn

9-year-old Girl Heads Home After 6 Organ Transplant at Children's Hospital

Help us register 20 million in 2012

New England Man Gives the Gift of Life

UNOS: Transplant Trends, January 31, 2012

Organ donation is taboo for Hispanics

Woman who asked Beiber to promote organ donation shares story

Doctors need to report organ transplant performances, Malaysia

Deadline for public to have say on organ donation law, Wales

Daughter gives dad kidney

Facebook app designed to help Organ Donation Awareness

Students learning about organ donation

"Pasadena, CA 2012 Rose Parade" O-H-I-O

No transplant for dying dad who is illegal immigrant

Organ donors saves lives

Citizen of the Year a walking tribute to organ donation

About World Kidney Day - March 12, 2012

Mission statement:

Our objectives are the following:

Many needing transplants die for lack of donated organs

Positivity shared at candlelight vigil

Little-known disease pushes life to the edge

Eighteen-year-old's organs help others

Teenager days from death has life-saving double lung transplant after spending 10 years in hosital

Using social media for organ transplants

North Carolina inmate wants to donate kidney, eye

Urging Hispanics to donate organs: Mom turns son's tragedy into fight for gift of life

Coach Jay Continues to Touch Lives

Gift of life stories shared at Univerity of Dayton Game

Nurse donates kidney to patient

A Message to Ellen Degeneres and Oprah Winfrey

Heart Transplant gives Lady's Island girl new lease on life

Waiting for a Heart

Heart recipient thanks donor's family, flown in from S. America

Athlete was an inspiration to family, community

Prescott Valley woman gets ultimate gift from daughter - a new kidney

Bieber pumps life into Ontario organ donations - 1500 on-line registrations!

Multiple organ transplant gives Nikki LeFebre hope for the future

Donate Life Ambassador Writes Book About Transplant Experience

Alex O'Loughlin Fans for Donate Life: Valentine's Day Donor Registration Drive

X Games Sarah Burke Tribute

Lung Transplant Recipient Prepares For 10th Hancock Climb

Tennessee man with wife's kidney blames Vanderbilt for organ decline

Temple Hospital to resume heart and lung transplants

New system safe, effective in delivering CsA to organ transplant patients

'Mad Cow' and Other Prion Diseases Hide Out in Spleen

Patriots' Tom Brady on Mission to Help Mentor

Kidney Donor Gives Organ to Stranger

Tanya O'Rourke and her surgeons talk about her recent kidney donation

Caffeine toxicity from energy drinks cited in Anais Fournier's death

Rabbi gave his kidney to a stranger - with love

Officer Moore Honored As Role Model Year After Death

More Malaysians willing to donate organs

Alex O'Loughlin Fans for Donate Life - Christmas Campaign Results and Presentation

GIFT OF HOPE ORGAN & TISSUE DONOR NETWORK NAMES SAN JOSE PUBLIC RELATIONS AS TOTAL MARKET COMMUNICATIONS PARTNER

Tom Brady connects with organ donor matchup site

'What do I need to do?'

Kidney transplant set to give Ingleby Barwick mum old life back

Doctor given 3-yr jail term for receiving kidney via illegal trade - Japan

Organ donor bill stalls - Virginia

Donor organs are often needlessly 'lost'