Help Sierra through her Kidney transplant!

Hi, my name is Jen Straub and I am fundraising for our friend Megan and her daughter Sierra who is currently having kidney failure and is in the process of searching for a kidney donor. Sierra is only 13 years old and her transplant team says she needs to find a new kidney within the next 3-4 months.

She was airlifted from Rutland hospital to Dartmouth on October 9th. After spending nine days in the hospital and undergoing many tests, including a kidney biopsy, it was discovered that she has Primary FSGS kidney disease (this type of FSGS means that the disease happened on its own, without a known or obvious cause). The biopsy showed her kidney disease had scared (permanently damaging) 90% of her kidneys, leaving her with little to no function. She is on dialysis 3-4 times per week. Each session takes 3-4 hours. Dialysis is extremely uncommon for someone her age, so she has had an extremely difficult time finding a local clinic to take her on as a patient. Her team is working on a solution, but for now they are currently traveling all the way to Dartmouth (3 hours round trip) for dialysis treatment, 3-4 times per week.

This condition is something Sierra was born with, but they didn’t see it coming. They had no idea something was wrong until she suddenly started to lack energy and feel sick. It is not something you can screen for, or quickly detect without a kidney biopsy. Statistics say that 7 people out of every million (varying with ethnicities) are diagnosed with Primary FSGS kidney disease. It is very rare, but in this small amount of cases, it doesn’t seem to show up before the adolescent years.

Sierra is type O so will need a type O donor (either O positive or O negative). Her transplant team is ready to start the deep screening process for any potential matches who are interested in being a donor.

Please show your support to Sierra and her mother, Megan by making a contribution today so that Megan can continue to stay home from work and be by Sierra’s side through this very difficult time. Your donations will go directly towards their living expenses, travel expenses to and from Sierra’s doctors appointments, specialized food for Sierra (she’s on a very strict diet) and anything else that they might possibly need. Any amount is greatly appreciated and will help lessen the financial burden so that they can focus on what’s most important, being there for Sierra.

Thank you for your support! It is greatly appreciated!