“In the midst of the pandemic, Duke University Hospital last week completed its 1,500th heart transplant, a milestone achieved by only five other transplant centers nationwide.
Surgeons performed the first heart transplant at Duke in 1985, and the hospital recorded its 1,000th heart transplant in 2014.
“It’s taken us six years to accomplish the next milestone, which we think is of significance,” Said Dr. Chet Patel, Duke’s medical director for heart transplants.”
Read the full story, here.
“You never know where an act of kindness ends.
Tara Berliski of Magnolia, Texas, offered to donate a kidney to her husband, John Berliski. His were removed in July because of polycystic kidney disease. Doctors at the Houston Methodist Hospital living donor program explained that because John Berliski has type AB blood, he could receive a kidney from almost any donor. But if John and Tara Berliski chose to enter a kidney swap program, they might be able to help someone else, too; someone else might help them.”
Read the full opinion piece, here.
“Receiving a kidney transplant is receiving a second chance at life, or even a third or fourth. But that doesn’t mean the work is done. A common misconception is that a transplant is a cure or fix-all. The reality, however, is that a kidney transplant is just another treatment option. So, while the days of dialysis may be over, patients must remain vigilant as they learn their new daily regimen in order to maintain long-term success with their new gift.”
Read all ten tips, here.
“The National Kidney Foundation (NKF) is joining forces with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the American Society of Nephrology (ASN), and actor, activist and entrepreneur Wilmer Valderrama to reach the 1 in 3 American adults at risk for kidney disease. “Are You the 33%?”is a nationwide public awareness campaign relaunching today timed for Hispanic Heritage Month. The campaign, originally launched in March 2020, was paused due to the national pandemic and will run through March 2021.”
Read the full article, here.
“Travel increases your chance of getting and spreading COVID-19. Staying home is the best way to protect yourself and others from COVID-19.”
You can read all the recent updates and recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on traveling during COVID-19, here.
“The Transplant Research and Education Center (TREC), in partnership with the Terasaki Institute for Biomedical Innovation and One Lambda, Inc. (onelambda.com), part of Thermo Fisher Scientific and leading producer of in vitro diagnostic products for the HLA transplant community, has launched a six-month mass media campaign for kidney and transplant patients, living donors, and medical providers to raise awareness about the innovative resources available through the Living Donation Storytelling Project.”
Read the full article, here.
“A NASCAR driver is racing to call attention to an issue close to his heart – organ donations.
Joey Gase raced Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth in the Autotrader Echopark Automotive 500.
Gase’s hood was covered with handprints from the families of organ donors — and those whose lives they saved.”
Watch the interview and read the full story, here.
“INDIANAPOLIS, Oct. 26, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — Despite the COVID-19 pandemic – and with more than two months remaining in 2020 – a record number of Hoosier organ donors have already given the gift of life through Indiana Donor Network, resulting in a record number of lifesaving organs transplanted in a single calendar year.
From Jan. 1 through Oct. 12, 2020, Indiana Donor Network, the state’s federally designated organ recovery organization, made it possible for 667 lifesaving organs to go to patients on the national transplant waiting list. This total breaks Indiana Donor Network’s existing record of 665 lifesaving organs transplanted in all of 2019 and puts the organization on pace to facilitate 28% more organ transplants this year than last year.”
Read the full article by Indiana Donor Network, here.
“Breanna Sipple and Erin Francis were strangers in the Philadelphia area three years ago when a single Facebook post changed both of their lives.
Francis was 24 years old and had just gotten married when she went into kidney failure. She was uneasy about sharing her story and seeking help, but her husband acted as a champion and made a Facebook post in search of an organ donor for Francis.”
Read the full story and watch the video clip, here.
“When Cyndi and Frank Grobmeier lost their 18-year-old daughter, Maddie, to an asthma attack, they honored her wish to be an organ donor. Gift of Hope, the organ procurement organization in Chicago that met with the Grobmeier family in the hospital when Maddie died, is still helping them cope with their loss. As Mrs. Grobmeier reminds us in her guest column in the Daily Southtown, donors and their families make every transplant possible.”
Read the full story on UNOS, here.