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| Doncella Liggins, pictured left, with Beverly Burch |
Doncella Liggins knew something was wrong when she had to sit down, out of breath, after climbing a short flight of stairs at Bates County Memorial Hospital, where she is the Director of Health Information Management. The diagnosis was end-stage kidney disease, caused by a genetic renal condition and a history of hypertension. To survive, she would need a new kidney, and dialysis until one became available.
That was two and a half years ago. Today, Doncella beams with health and gratitude as she tells the story about the donor who stepped forward: a very good friend she had known for years, Beverly Burch, a sorority sister from her hometown of Butler, Missouri.
When Doncella tells her story, she says the focus should be on Bev.
“She’s the hero. She’s my angel. A lot of people aren’t willing to donate a living kidney, but she never hesitated,” Doncella recalls.
Although Doncella was on the national transplant donor list, she may have waited for years for a new kidney if it weren’t for Bev, who was a perfect match. Afraid something would go wrong, Bev waited to tell Doncella she was the donor until the day before surgery. She gave Doncella a card that read, “Looking forward to sharing part of my life with you! Love you – Bev. Let’s do this!”
On June 28, 2018, the transplant surgery was successfully performed at St. Luke’s Health System in Kansas City, Mo.
Today, Doncella and Bev are advocates for organ donation, sharing this message: You don’t have to die to be a donor. In June, close to one year after their surgery, they are scheduled to be co-speakers at the annual Giving Fore Living banquet, a charity in their hometown that raises awareness for organ donation.
“This is a journey I wouldn’t wish on anyone, but it made me more aware of organ donation,” Doncella says. “As soon as I shared the news of my diagnosis, several friends and coworkers approached me and said, ‘What can I do?’ I have to admit, I don’t know if I would have made that kind of offer before this happened to me. I would have had to think about all the possible long-term effects, if any, due to my history of hypertension.”
Although a living organ donation carries risk and personal sacrifice, it is ideal for the recipient: life expectancy is estimated to be 12 to 20 years, as opposed to approximately 8 to 12 years for a transplant from a deceased donor, according to Donate Life America. According to the Mayo Clinic, other benefits include lower risk of rejection of the donor kidney, improved survival rates, improved quality of life, lower treatment costs, and avoiding the restrictions and complications of dialysis.
Doncella wants to spread a message of hope to others like her. She also wants to encourage those who are healthy to think about becoming a living donor.
“It’s a big decision, a life changing decision. But I can’t convey what it meant to me. From the moment I heard the news there was a match, I was a different person. I had hope when I thought all was lost.”
Every 10 minutes, another person is added to the national transplant waiting list — and 82% of patients waiting are in need of a kidney. Because Bev came forward for Doncella, she potentially saved two lives: Doncella’s, and the next person on the deceased organ waiting list.
“How do you thank someone who is so generous in giving?” Doncella still wonders. “I don’t think there’s a way to ever thank her. I just love her so much. Our lives will be forever entwined.”
