Kate Kidney Autotransplant
Donation protected
Last month, my youngest child, Kate had to have a kidney autotransplant, which is where she was the donor and recipient of one of her own kidneys. In January, Kate was diagnosed with a rare condition called Nutcracker Syndrome. The renal vein from her left kidney was compressed, preventing blood flow from her kidney. This resulted in extremely painful kidney and lower back pain that she suffered with for months before relocating out to Utah in December to be seen by specialists in this issue.
In the surgery, which is an open, 6 hour surgery with a 4 day stay in the hospital after, they remove the left kidney, correct the compression, and replace the kidney into the right pelvis to prevent future recompression. Recovery has been slow and rocky as she's faced 2 infections in the last month, lots of extra scans and testing, and a couple ER visits.
Previous to this surgery, Kate also had surgery in 2019 after being diagnosed with another rare condition called Celiac Artery Compression Syndrome (a sister issue to Nutcracker), where a ligament was cutting off blood flow to her liver, stomach, pancreas, and spleen. Luckily this surgery (also done in Salt Lake City) was less invasive, but still had a long recovery as her body and digestive system adjusted to the increased blood flow.
The pain and restrictions of these compressions started about 8 years ago, and she spent several years traveling to multiple cities trying to find doctors who could help her, but often turned her away saying she was fine. We're all so grateful Kate has finally been able to find a great team of doctors in Salt Lake City to treat these compressions. While she very much prefers to keep quiet about her health, there have been issues with insurance this year covering some of the costs of the transplant.
She has a long road of recovery ahead of her, and we're all looking forward to her getting her health back under control and going back to a normal lifestyle.
Any donations and prayers would be greatly appreciated!
In the surgery, which is an open, 6 hour surgery with a 4 day stay in the hospital after, they remove the left kidney, correct the compression, and replace the kidney into the right pelvis to prevent future recompression. Recovery has been slow and rocky as she's faced 2 infections in the last month, lots of extra scans and testing, and a couple ER visits.
Previous to this surgery, Kate also had surgery in 2019 after being diagnosed with another rare condition called Celiac Artery Compression Syndrome (a sister issue to Nutcracker), where a ligament was cutting off blood flow to her liver, stomach, pancreas, and spleen. Luckily this surgery (also done in Salt Lake City) was less invasive, but still had a long recovery as her body and digestive system adjusted to the increased blood flow.
The pain and restrictions of these compressions started about 8 years ago, and she spent several years traveling to multiple cities trying to find doctors who could help her, but often turned her away saying she was fine. We're all so grateful Kate has finally been able to find a great team of doctors in Salt Lake City to treat these compressions. While she very much prefers to keep quiet about her health, there have been issues with insurance this year covering some of the costs of the transplant.
She has a long road of recovery ahead of her, and we're all looking forward to her getting her health back under control and going back to a normal lifestyle.
Any donations and prayers would be greatly appreciated!
Organizer and beneficiary
Cindi Alley
Organizer
Payson, UT
Katherine McFarland
Beneficiary