'Survivor' star in fight against disease

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'Survivor' star in fight against disease

24 comments by Astrid Galvan - Sept. 18, 2008 12:45 PM
The Arizona Republic

It was just a routine physical Joel Anderson had to complete for his job as a Phoenix firefighter.

At 250 pounds of hard-worked muscle, the 33-year-old Gilbert man who has been on Survivor felt and looked healthy.

But tests revealed Anderson had a low glomerular filtration rate, or GFR, an indicator of how well kidneys filter waste from blood. That led to the revelation that Anderson has kidney disease.

Doctors said he was steps away from needing dialysis and maybe even a kidney transplant.

Four months later, Anderson has teamed up with the Arizona Kidney Foundation to help the non-profit promote their "Know Your GFR" Campaign.

The father of two starred in a public service announcement that aired on TV.

He wasn't a stranger to the camera - he'd been on the 16th season of the CBS series Survivor for five episodes, which aired this year.

Anderson has also been spreading the word about getting tested and being cautious to his friends at work and the gym.

"I've been talking more and more as I get more and more comfortable with my situation," Anderson said.

Chronic kidney disease affects one in nine Americans, according to the Arizona Kidney Foundation.

Ninety percent of those aren't aware they have it.

Anderson had no clue.

When he found out, he initially hesitated - "I kinda blew it off," he said - but went on to research his disease online.

He talked to his wife, who was alarmed at first but immediately offered her support.

"I just encouraged him to take better care of himself in his way of training and working," said Jasmyne Anderson.

Anderson cut 1,000 calories per day from his diet and stopped taking extra protein, a common practice for weightlifters.

Now he's down to 230 pounds, a weight loss he always feared but knew would be beneficial.

"For me, if I dropped below 250 I'd begin to panic," he said. "But when you measure that against a future for my kids, it doesn't hold any weight at all."

Anderson said he has more visits to make with a doctor, but will continue to eat healthier and take care of his health.

He hopes to help the Arizona Kidney Foundation in any way he can and keep encouraging friends to get their GFR levels tested even if they lead healthy lifestyles.

"You wouldn't look at me and think kidney issues," he said. "You wouldn't look at me and think health issues."

Info: azkidney.org.
http://www.azcentral.com/news/articles/2008/09/18/20080918gr-anderson0917-ON.html PHOTO: Joel Anderson, 33, discovered he had chronic kidney disease during a routine physical. To the right is Anderson during his "Survivor" stint.