An Iowa woman will donate her kidney to a Minnesota toddler she has never met.Heather Kimbrough, of Eagle Grove, stumbled across a Facebook post back in August that really touched her. In the post, a mother in Minnesota put out a desperate plea to find her son a kidney donor. "He has zero kidney function. He's been on dialysis since he was born. Doctors gave him less than 1% to make it so he is just a true miracle. He was on life support the first three weeks of his life and spent the first six months of his life at the hospital. He just continues to fight," said Desiree Teubert.Teubert's son, Ryder Geisler, spends twelve hours a day hooked up to dialysis. Ryder is 22 months old, but he can't walk, talk or eat without a feeding tube because of his kidney failure. "It's an emotional roller coaster and traumatizing at the same time, but we're so proud of him and hope he continues to fight," said Teubert.After reading Teubert's post, Kimbrough decided to fill out an application online. She then underwent vigorous testing. "It was a lot of making sure I was healthy in every way and didn't have something I could pass on to him," said Kimbrough.Doctors at M Health Fairview University of Minnesota Medical Center notified Kimbrough that she is a near-perfect match. She will undergo surgery on March 19 to donate her kidney to Ryder. "I feel grateful that I can give this to him ... help him have a normal life," said Kimbrough."There is no way to repay her. There is no words that I can describe to give my child a second chance at life. I'm speechless. I really am," said Teubert.According to the United Network of Organ Sharing, 7,397 living donor transplants were performed in 2019. Doctors say a living donor kidneys last much longer. "It's going to make such a big difference," said Dr. Vanessa Humphreville. She is the director of the Living Donor Kidney Transplant Center at the University of Minnesota. Humphreville will be the surgeon performing Kimbrough's surgery. She says the new kidney will give Ryder a chance to live a completely normal life. "I did a kidney transplant on a 2-year-old. He couldn't walk. He couldn't talk. About four months after this I am walking through the hospital and this little kid comes running up to me. Sorry, I still get a little choked up about it, but he came running up to me and it was just night and day. He was talking. He could walk. It was just night and day. Kidney transplants made such a difference for these patients," said Humphreville. If you would like to know more about kidney donation, you can fill out a questionnaire at https://www.umnhealthlivingdonor.org/You can also visit the National Kidney Registry.
An Iowa woman will donate her kidney to a Minnesota toddler she has never met.
Heather Kimbrough, of Eagle Grove, stumbled across a Facebook post back in August that really touched her. In the post, a mother in Minnesota put out a desperate plea to find her son a kidney donor.
"He has zero kidney function. He's been on dialysis since he was born. Doctors gave him less than 1% to make it so he is just a true miracle. He was on life support the first three weeks of his life and spent the first six months of his life at the hospital. He just continues to fight," said Desiree Teubert.
Teubert's son, Ryder Geisler, spends twelve hours a day hooked up to dialysis. Ryder is 22 months old, but he can't walk, talk or eat without a feeding tube because of his kidney failure.
"It's an emotional roller coaster and traumatizing at the same time, but we're so proud of him and hope he continues to fight," said Teubert.
After reading Teubert's post, Kimbrough decided to fill out an application online. She then underwent vigorous testing.
"It was a lot of making sure I was healthy in every way and didn't have something I could pass on to him," said Kimbrough.
Doctors at M Health Fairview University of Minnesota Medical Center notified Kimbrough that she is a near-perfect match. She will undergo surgery on March 19 to donate her kidney to Ryder.
"I feel grateful that I can give this to him ... help him have a normal life," said Kimbrough.
"There is no way to repay her. There is no words that I can describe to give my child a second chance at life. I'm speechless. I really am," said Teubert.
According to the United Network of Organ Sharing, 7,397 living donor transplants were performed in 2019. Doctors say a living donor kidneys last much longer.
"It's going to make such a big difference," said Dr. Vanessa Humphreville. She is the director of the Living Donor Kidney Transplant Center at the University of Minnesota. Humphreville will be the surgeon performing Kimbrough's surgery. She says the new kidney will give Ryder a chance to live a completely normal life.
"I did a kidney transplant on a 2-year-old. He couldn't walk. He couldn't talk. About four months after this I am walking through the hospital and this little kid comes running up to me. Sorry, I still get a little choked up about it, but he came running up to me and it was just night and day. He was talking. He could walk. It was just night and day. Kidney transplants made such a difference for these patients," said Humphreville.
If you would like to know more about kidney donation, you can fill out a questionnaire at https://www.umnhealthlivingdonor.org/
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