Sisters under the skin: Friend donates a kidney

September 19, 2010
Sisters under the skin: Friend donates a kidney

By Karen Middleton karen@athensnews-courier.com karen@athensnews-courier.com Sun Sep 19, 2010, 02:00 AM CDT

Dianne McAlister and Bonita Phillips became acquainted mostly through their daughters who attend Athens High School.

But one night, their acquaintance became a friendship. When Bonita’s kidneys failed earlier this year, her plight touched Dianne’s heart and she knew she had to do what she could.

Bonita, 42, was diagnosed with lupus in 2002 and earlier this year she found out the disease had attacked her kidneys and the organs were only functioning at 10 percent.

Bonita’s nephrologist at the University of Alabama at Birmingham said she must have a transplant or go on dialysis. She sent out a blanket e-mail to everyone in her address book with the news.

“I got a second opinion from the Mayo Clinic and they concurred,” said Bonita.

Dianne, 46, a loan officer for Mortgage America, said she learned of the bad turn in Bonita’s health at a basketball game.

“I knew Bonita was sick throughout the whole process,” said Dianne. “We were at a ballgame. Her daughter Klair was playing basketball and my daughter Jessica was cheerleading. I said, ‘How are you doing?’ and she said she would have to find a kidney donor or go on dialysis. She said she was on the kidney waiting list at UAB, which is not a national list, and there could be a five-to-17-year wait.”

Tears come to Dianne’s eyes in retelling the incident, as they did that night on the AHS gym bleachers.

“She is telling me this and I couldn’t help thinking about Proverbs 3:5, ‘Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding,’” said Dianne.

The Bible verse was to repeat itself often throughout that sleepless night as Dianne could not shake the sense that she was being called on to help her friend.

“I didn’t tell Greg (her husband) or Bonita,” she said. “The very next morning I called Dr. (Gary) Gross and asked him about what was involved in becoming a kidney donor. He said it was a great thing and there shouldn’t be any repercussions.

“I called UAB and they questioned me to see if I qualified as a kidney donor. They sent me a blood kit in the mail and I did it and sent it back. Then they called me and told me I was a match, and that is when I told Greg.”

Dianne said she was “at peace” with her decision to go ahead. Meanwhile, several people among Bonita’s e-mail recipients also had testing kits sent to them from UAB.

“There were four other tissue matches, but they never reveal who they are,” said Bonita. “That’s pretty amazing, but the others were rejected for other reasons.”

While Bonita’s blood type is B-positive and Dianne’s blood type is O-positive, they were a near perfect tissue match.

“I never had to go on dialysis, so that was in my favor,” said Bonita. “And even though I am a B-positive, they said they would take a living donor, even though O-positive and not a perfect match, over a cadaver that is a perfect match. “

Dianne said when she told her family of her plan to donate a kidney to Bonita, they were supportive of her decision.

“My daughter Kelly said, ‘Mama, I’ve got two good kidneys, so if your remaining kidney fails I will give you one of mine,’” said Dianne.

On Aug. 2, the two friends were wheeled into a surgical room at UAB.

“We were right next to each other in the operating room,” said Dianne.

“Her kidney started working immediately,” said Bonita.

Bonita was attached to a pump and doctors filtered five liters of liquid through her new kidney, removing a buildup of toxins.

“I could tell the difference in two days,” said Bonita. “My energy level was up.”

Her blood pressure, which spiked when her kidney function decreased, returned to normal levels.

Dianne said her donor kidney was removed laparoscopically with a mere 3-inch incision.

“We had the surgery on a Thursday and I came home on a Saturday,” said Dianne. “I have a job that allows me to work from home, which I did for a week. “

Dianne said she notices no effects from functioning with just one kidney. She said her research showed that healthy kidneys do not usually function at full capacity and when one is lost, the other takes over.

“I had to stay at a UAB townhouse for three weeks because of the rejection factor,” said Bonita. “I had to have blood work every morning. Once I was released, I came home for a week and then started going back part time to work.”

Bonita is an office manager for her husband Kendell’s engineering services office in Huntsville.

“Luckily, I know the boss pretty well and I was able to work from home,” said Bonita.

Both say they are now fully recovered and met for breakfast in Athens one day last week. They say it has become their mission to encourage everyone who can to become an organ donor.

“You can donate so many body parts,” said Bonita. “When you die, you’re not using it. Other than your heart, you can donate as a living donor –– bone marrow, a kidney, even part of your liver.”

“People ask me, ‘Why would you do it?’” said Dianne. “And I tell them, just go to a dialysis clinic and talk to those people there. You will see real quick that if you can do it, then do it.”

The Alabama Kidney Foundation will present the 2010 North Alabama Kidney Patient Education Conference Sunday, Sept. 26, at the Corporate University at Huntsville Hospital. The conference is free to kidney patients and one guest. A continental breakfast and lunch are provided.

The conference is also open to nephrology professionals and anyone interested in kidney disease. For more information or to obtain registration materials, call 800-750-3331 or 205-934-2111, or visit: www.alkidney.org.

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