3 surgeries later, teacher still in need

Article published on May 03, 2008

Dunbarton

3 surgeries later, teacher still in need
Kidney transplant was deemed a failure

By Margot Sanger-Katz
Monitor staff
May 03, 2008

After three surgeries in three days, Dunbarton Elementary School teacher Candace Harrison still needs a new kidney.

Harrison, who has been seeking a donation for nearly a year, got lucky when a stranger who read her story and offered her an organ turned out to be a match. But a transplant surgery last week at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester was deemed a failure, and the healthy, donated kidney had to be removed.

"I'm extremely disappointed," Harrison said from her home, where she is recovering. "It was hard news to take for both me and the donor."

Harrison said that tests at the hospital shortly after the transplant last week showed that her new kidney was not functioning properly. Surgeons attempted to fix the problem but were unsuccessful. Ultimately, the donated kidney was removed.

Harrison, who has had diabetes since childhood, has already had one successful kidney transplant. Eleven years ago, her father donated one of his kidneys when her renal function first began to decline. That kidney has served her well, but when she learned recently that a pancreas transplant could cure her diabetes permanently, she was also told that her father's kidney was not strong enough to endure the second organ transplant.
Because Harrison's kidneys still have some function and she does not require dialysis, she is not high on the national transplant waiting list, which determines how organs from deceased donors are given out. For her to get a new kidney before her health declines, she needs an individual to step forward and offer an organ to her specifically.

Friends and parents of Harrison's students learned about her situation last year and began publicizing her need. Word spread quickly in Dunbarton, where many parents volunteer at the elementary school. After an article ran in the Monitor, several volunteers stepped forward to be tested, according to Debbie Urbanik, a friend of Harrison's. Those volunteers included the donor who gave Harrison a kidney.

Harrison said that she met the donor, who did not wish to be identified, last week, and the two quickly became friendly. Harrison said she's found the donor's generosity and poise "inspiring," but said she's aware that the failed transplant has taken an emotional toll on them both.

"She was so selfless and loving and kind and caring and willing," Harrison said. "It's a recovery process for her too."

Dr. Waichi Wong, a nephrologist in the transplant unit at Massachusetts General Hospital, who was not involved in Harrison's case, said that catastrophic complications in kidney transplants are extremely rare. She can only recall one failed transplant in the seven years she's worked on transplant cases. But she said that complications, like rejection, blood clots and bleeding, do occur occasionally.

"You never know what the body is going to do. It's very, very rare," Wong said. "It's unfortunate this happened, but it can happen."

Wong said that as the number of patients needing kidneys goes up, the wait to receive them also increases. A typical wait in New England is four to six years, she said. More and more, patients have begun relying on altruistic donors to come forward. She encourages her patients to put up signs, tell their family and friends and use local media to help solicit a donation.

Though the transplant was not a success, Harrison still needs to recover from her three surgeries, and she expects it will be about six weeks before she's back to normal. In the meantime, a group of nearly 30 parents, teachers and friends have pooled resources to bring her meals, give her rides to appointments and raise money. A send-off party held before Harrison left for her surgery had more than 60 guests, said Barbara Andersen, a Dunbarton Elementary parent who has been helping to coordinate meals.

"I want her to know that people are stepping up so she knows there's some positive stuff going on," Urbanik said.

Harrison said she's already sent a card to her sixth-grade class and hopes to visit them when she's well enough. She plans to return to teaching before the end of the school year.

Harrison said that she's waiting on her doctor's advice, but she thinks she's still healthy enough for another kidney transplant should someone come forward to donate one.

"I'm still very much in the recovery stage," Harrison said.

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