Receive kidney, then look for a cure

Receive kidney, then look for a cure
Va. man looks to honor gift of life

By Carol Vaughn
Staff Writer
9-10-07

ONANCOCK -- A Parksley man will never forget the gift his brother-in-law gave him in 2003.

It was the gift of life itself -- a healthy kidney to replace his own pair that were ravaged by a devastating disease.

Now C. L. Bundick and his family work to raise awareness and funds to find a cure, including spearheading a fundraiser Wednesday at Stella's restaurant in Onancock.

It's called "the worst genetic disease you've ever heard of," and it has devastated multiple generations of Bundick's family. polycystic kidney disease, which causes fluid-filled cysts to develop on both kidneys, has no cure and affects 12.5 million people -- one in 500 worldwide.

His mother, uncle and brother died of it, another brother has it and is awaiting a transplant, and one of his three children also has been diagnosed, as well as cousins and a nephew.

"It never skips generations," Bundick said.

But for Bundick, 60, the way to beat the disease also came from a family member.

When his kidney function plummeted to dangerously low levels -- 14 percent -- four years ago and Bundick needed a transplant to survive, brother-in-law Todd Thornes stepped up and offered his healthy kidney.

"He never hesitated a second," said Bundick of his wife's brother's amazing gift.

Organs from living donors -- people only need one kidney to function normally -- make up 38 percent of all kidney transplants and have greater success rates and better long-term outcomes than kidneys from deceased donors.

In addition, there is a three- to five-year wait for kidneys from deceased donors, and a person must be on dialysis before he is put on the waiting list.

PKD is a gradual disease, often not affecting sufferers much until they reach their 30s, 40s, or even 50s. But more than 60 percent of people with PKD eventually develop kidney failure and depend on dialysis or a transplant to live.

And transplant recipients have to take a regimen of expensive and side-effect-laden anti-rejection drugs for the rest of their lives.

Bundick's wife, Dana, offered her kidney first. She was tested and found to be a match, but when she was found to have kidney stones, the transplant was put on hold for three years.

That's when Thornes stepped in, and his kidney turned out to be an even better match.

"Todd spoke up when I was at that critical point," Bundick said.

"On June 16, 2003, I was born again, literally," he said of the dual operations at Sentara Norfolk General Hospital that removed the kidney from Thornes and placed it in Bundick.

"Two days after the transplant C. L. was like a new man," Dana Bundick said.

Before the transplant, he was exhausted all the time.

Bundick is an electrical inspector in Accomack and Northampton counties and, he said, "I'd get home from work and I'd have to lie down."

He also experienced high blood pressure and abdominal swelling -- a normal kidney is the size of a human fist, but a diseased one can grow to the size of a football or larger and weigh nearly 40 pounds.

Other effects of the disease include chronic back pain, heart problems, stroke and increased risk of brain aneurysm -- from which his oldest brother died at 62.

The disease also affects the liver; Bundick's uncle died at 29 of liver disease.

For Thornes, 44, a range/flight safety engineer at Wallops Flight Facility and also an Onley Town Councilman, the decision to donate a kidney to Bundick wasn't hard.

"I didn't even think about it," he said.

He said support for and tracking of organ donors' quality of life after transplant is thorough.

"For something so dramatic, it's been a very good experience," he said.

Thornes and his wife, Lynn, celebrate the anniversary of the transplant every year by going out with the Bundicks.

"We sit back and think about what happened," Thornes said. "C.L. and I have a special bond now."

If it was family genetics that caused the disease, it was also family that saw Bundick through.

"Through all my sickness, they never left me -- not for one minute was I alone," said Bundick.
Finding a cure

Since Bundick's transplant, the family also is committed to getting the word out about PKD and the need to find a cure and fund more research.

PKD costs the federal government more than $2 billion a year in health care-related costs, but the government spends only about $24 million a year on research.

The Bundicks are founding members of the Tidewater chapter of the PKD Foundation, which has grown from six to two dozen members and is about to sponsor its third annual Walk for PKD.

C.L. Bundick's daughter, Maureen B. Morgan, is coordinating the walk, and the Bundicks plan to participate.

Locally, they have organized a Guest Waiter Night at Stella's in Onancock. The Bundicks are among the 10 guest waiters, as are Morgan and both Thornes.

All tips will go to the PKD Foundation.

The other guest waiters: Bruce Jones, Northampton County Commonwealth's Attorney; Wanda Smith of Eastern Shore Community College; Brenda Payne, Shore Bank vice president; and Dr. Glenn Wolffe and Jane Wolffe of Chincoteague. Guest bartenders are Bill Hall and Kenny Lang.

Wednesday's event includes a silent auction of items featuring a pair of Donald Sparrow numbered prints and a week for a camper at YMCA Camp Silver Beach. Additional silent auction items have been donated by Stella's, Saffron, The Movie Gallery, E.D. Supply, Maureen B. Morgan, Shore Stitches, The Daily Grind, Jaxon's, Tomorrow's Treasurers, Redwood Gables Restaurant, Tracinda's Treas-ures, Chesapeake Traditions, Reflections, Jennie Lee Thornes, The Pet Spa, and a Longaberger basket by Susan Beasley.

cvaughn@dmg.gannett.com

757-787-1200

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