Giving of yourself out of love

[okarol]

Giving of yourself out of love
Kidney donations such as a man's to his wife are a growing option.

By Ann Schrader
The Denver Post
Article Last Updated: 07/15/2008 12:26:21 AM MDT

When people marry, they pledge to love and support each other in sickness and in health.

Few envision literally giving a part of themselves to ensure their spouses' health, but Rich Ferdinandsen did just that, donating his left kidney more than a year ago to his wife, Jan.

"Spouse donations have been done before, but not that many years ago it wasn't a possible option," said Dr. Larry Chan, kidney specialist and transplant surgeon at the University of Colorado Hospital.

"Living donations" of kidneys transplanted from one person to another are becoming more common, Chan said, because of a donor shortage.

University Hospital was among the first centers in the nation to perform such living-donor transplants. Nearly half of the 130 kidney transplants performed each year at the hospital are living donations, usually from a sibling, parent or child.

As it turns out, "spouses are just as good as blood-related family members," Chan said.

For Rich Ferdinandsen, there was no question about the donation when his wife's doctor told her late in 2006 "the time is now" for a transplant.

"I was so fortunate," said Ferdinandsen, a former Jefferson County commissioner who left office in 1992. "I was in good health. And we had a world-class medical center doing these transplants in our own backyard."

University Hospital has performed more than 3,000 kidney transplants since 1962. Chan was instrumental in reviving the kidney-transplant program in 1988.

It wasn't that many years ago when Ferdinandsen, then 64, would have been ruled out as a potential donor because of his age.

Doctors had to consider the impact of surgery and potential post-surgical complications, plus the declining function of kidneys as people age.

"We're getting higher and higher in the age limit," Chan said. "The potential donor just has to understand the risks."

Ferdinandsen persisted. He was subjected to an onslaught of tests: treadmill, EKG, colonoscopy — the works.

He finally was cleared, and on June 27, 2007, the transplant was done.

"I want people to know if an old guy like me can do it, they can, too," Ferdinandsen said. "It's a good alternative if you have the opportunity to help someone you care about."

Jan Ferdinandsen marvels that her husband was a match.

"It is so incredible that he was willing, and he was a part of my life," she said. "I'm so very fortunate."

Without his donation, Jan Ferdinandsen was looking at joining about 400,000 Americans on dialysis and 70,000 to 80,000 who are on the transplant list.

Chan said the wait — unless luck intervenes — is three to five years.

"We are given two kidneys," Chan said, "so maybe we can spare one."

Ann Schrader: 303-278-3217 or aschrader@denverpost.com

http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_9882180