Humble hero travels thousands of miles to donate kidney (Part 2)

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Humble hero travels thousands of miles to donate kidney (Part 2)

By Deena Centofanti

SOUTHFIELD, Mich. (WJBK)

Cooler in hand, kidney in cooler, a doctor was on a mission.

"I'm excited.  I just want to get it over with and start the healing process," said Terry Phillips.

The story starts with two men, one a grandfather, 62-year-old Terry Phillips, in need of a kidney.  The other, 34-year-old Ryan Losicki, a distant family acquaintance who's willing to donate his.

"As soon as I found out we were a match, I wanted to do it right away.  I didn't want him to get any sicker," said Losicki.

After months of testing, physical and psychological, transplant day at the University of Michigan arrived.  Getting Losicki's kidney out involved three things, a tiny video camera to guide a dissecting tool and then the surgeon's hand.

"With the kidney in surgeon's hand, they pull it out through that three inch incision, which is just large enough to get the kidney out in a condition where it's going to be good for transplant, but also not to leave a very big scar for the donor," said UMHS transplant surgeon Dr. Randy Sung.

The kidney was packed into an ice filled cooler and quickly walked to Phillips' operating room.  Putting the kidney in is actually easier than taking it out.  Critical connections are made, so blood can be filtered and then, eventually, Phillips would walk away with three kidneys.

"Most people who have kidney failure, their kidneys aren't harming them.  They're just not functioning.  So, as long as you have the transplant there that is, their own kidneys basically just sit there and don't cause them any trouble," Song explained.

To make sure his body doesn't fight that foreign object, Phillips will spend the rest of his life on anti-rejection medication, which, in effect, tells his immune system to slow down, raising the risk of other infections.

"We don't give people transplants so they can sit at home and live in a bubble and be afraid of every single bug that exists out there in the world.  They don't have to do that.  They can live normal lives," said Song.

One week later, recovering in some pain,  Losicki, in a rare show of emotion, described the moment he first saw Phillips after the surgery. 

"The next day we got together and we saw each other and we were like 'yes!'  We both were just so happy that we both made [it] out of it and tears.  It was just so happy, so joyful."

"It's a big thank you, just a big thank you," said Phillips.

Phillips feels like a new man, the new kidney doing exactly what it should.

"The kidney started working on that day, so I was really surprised how fast it worked."

Meanwhile, Losicki, who's never had surgery before, is realizing recovery might be a little rough, but he has not one regret.

"Sounds bad, it feels bad, but all that goes away.  I mean, to be able to help someone and save a life, that's forever. That's huge."

Had Losicki not stepped up, Phillips would probably still be on the waiting list for a kidney.

Losicki and Phillips hope this story will motivate more people to donate organs.

Losicki is a finish carpenter, which is a physical job.  He will be out of work for about six weeks, so a fund has been set up at any PNC bank to help cover his expenses while he heals.

http://www.myfoxdetroit.com/story/19133079/2012/07/27/humble-hero-travels-thousands-of-miles-to-donate-kidney-part-2