Giving the Gift of Life…Organ transplants save lives, need is great

Newswise — Nine months before the 2005 holiday season, 46-year-old Steven Kandt received a gift that gave him a second chance at life: a double lung transplant.

“My life right now is so incredible,” says Kandt, who was born with cystic fibrosis, a genetic condition that can cause impaired lung function. “I’m coaching my daughter’s basketball team after years of only being able to watch her play from the stands and wishing I could be on the court to help her out. Now I’m doing it. I’m living the dream.”

Today, a now healthy Kandt is doing things he never thought possible because someone else – whom he never even knew – decided to make the choice to become an organ donor and give the ultimate gift: the gift of life.

As families gather and give for the holiday season, Mark Gravel, RN, director of Donations Initiatives at the University of Michigan Health System, says it is the perfect time to discuss donation options and preferences with loved ones who may some day need to make the decision for you about organ and tissue donation.

“When a family decides to give the gift of life, it’s an opportunity for their loved one to live on beyond death,” Gravel says. “One organ donor can save the lives of up to eight people, and tissue donors can impact the lives of nearly 30 people. Just one act of giving can save nearly 40 people.”

According to the United Network of Organ Sharing (UNOS), 90,000 people in the United States are currently waiting for a transplant. More than 1,600 people will be removed from the list this year because they become too sick for a transplant, and another 7,000 people will die while waiting, making the need for organ donors that much more dire.

Recently, UMHS, in collaboration with the organ and tissue recovery organization Gift of Life Michigan, has made great strides to shrink the gap between patients on organ wait lists and organs available for transplantation.

Through the creation of the organ Donations Initiative Program, UMHS has worked to increase staff education, and improve the informed consent process by using trained staff to talk with patients’ families about the potential for organ donation, says Gravel. In 2004, UMHS raised its organ donation rate to 92 percent, making it the leading transplant center for donation in Michigan and earning it the U.S. Department of Human Services’ distinguished Medal of Honor for achieving and exceeding a life-saving organ donation rate of 75 percent or greater for a 12-month period.

But Kandt says the people who deserve the most praise are those who make the often difficult decision to donate a loved-ones organs to help others in need.

After a lifetime with cystic fibrosis, Kandt’s condition progressively got worse by his late-30s. Frequent lung infections left him dependent on an oxygen tank for 24 hours a day, and confined to the couch. Just walking down a hallway would leave him tired and out of breath.

The man who doctors once thought wouldn’t live to see first grade, now knew that a double lung transplant was the only thing that would give him his life back.

Kandt was placed on the transplant list and waited. Months went by, and his condition worsened to a point where he began to prepare for his death.

Fortunately, in March 2005, after a 25-month wait, he finally got the call that a pair of lungs were found that were a match.

“It was a miracle and it was just the best feeling in the world to know that my time here on earth was going to be extended because some family out there had the courage and thoughtfulness to give the gift of life at the worst possible time in their lives,” Kandt says. “I know it’s something I can never repay them for, but I will always be thankful to them.”

Those interested in becoming organ donors are encouraged to discuss their decision with their family, or document their wishes on a driver’s license or organ donor card, which can be obtained through a local organ procurement organization, such as Gift of Life Michigan.

Facts about organ transplants and donation:

• Approximately 90,000 people are listed and waiting for a transplant in the U.S. according to UNOS. More than 1,600 people will be removed from the list this year because they become too sick for a transplant, and another 7,000 people will die while waiting.

• Michigan patients currently waiting for a transplant, according to Gift of Life Michigan, as of November 2005:
- Kidney: 2,159
- Heart: 52
- Lung: 57
- Kidney/Liver: 10
- Kidney/Heart: 2
- Pancreas: 33
- Kidney/Pancreas: 68

• In 2004, the organ donation efforts of UMHS and Gift of Life Michigan resulted in 68 organs for transplantation – 38 kidneys, 18 livers, three hearts, three lungs, five pancreases and one intestine.

• According to UNOS, when an organ donor becomes available, all the patients on the wait list are compared to that donor. Factors such as medical urgency, time spent on the wait list, organ size, blood type and genetic makeup are considered. The organ is offered first to the candidate that is the best match.

• If you are interested in becoming an organ donor, discuss your decision with your family; make sure they know what you want, and find out what they want. You can use signing your driver's license or signing a donor card to raise the subject.

• More than 861,000 individuals are registered on the Gift of Life Michigan Donor Registry.