Molly's Kidney Transplant Surgery
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Our sister, Molly Sager Harvell, has been diagnosed with an extremely rare kidney disease called Loin Pain Hematuria Syndrome “LPHS.” She has been suffering from chronic pain as a direct result of this disease for over 17 years. On December 14th, she will undergo kidney auto-transplant surgery. This major surgery will take approximately 7 hours, will be handled 100% robotically and accompanied by two of the top transplant surgeons in the Dallas Fort Worth area. While there are risks; the success rate is very, very high. For the first time in what seems to be a lifetime for Molly; she has a real chance of being totally cured of this rare and debilitating disease and most importantly; living pain free. Molly and her husband need financial help to get them through the surgery and recovery.
To give you a little backstory, Molly first started having pain in her right kidney accompanied with blood in her urine when she was 25 years old. The doctors could not diagnose her at first. They believed that her pain was solely caused by kidney stones. Unfortunately; this was proven to not be the case. Over the next 7 years; numerous emergency room and doctor’s visits, and ungodly number of intrusive medical tests run; the doctors decided to remove Molly’s gall bladder hoping it would alleviate the pain. Not long after this procedure; it was evident that the severe pain was coming from another unknown source.
Molly was sent to 2 kidney specialists and 2 urologists all of which performed more invasive testing; none of which could provide a diagnosis. Another dead end. Molly was referred to a UT Southwestern Nephrologist Specialist who examined her and ALL of her medical records. He said he had heard of a kidney condition called LPHS and thought all her symptoms seemed to match that diagnosis, however the only way to rule out any other kidney condition that can mimic the same symptoms was to have a kidney biopsy.
Molly agreed. She was sent to a team of nephrologists in Dallas. They performed the kidney biopsy and ruled out any other kidney condition. Their diagnosis by exclusion was LPHS. The doctors did not provide any cure or treatments options. Instead she was referred to a pain management doctor. Our sister did not want to accept the diagnosis and was determined not to be on pain medicine for the rest of her life, so she continue to seek other opinions and see other kidney specialists. Unfortunately, Molly received the same diagnosis EVERY time. No permanent treatment options offered; just pain management.
As time went on; Her episodes of pain became more intense and more frequent (it was chronic – no breaks in-between her pain at all.) 5 years ago; the pain became so severe that Molly was prescribed opiates and narcotics medication to combat this incapacitating pain.
As you can imagine, suffering from that much pain and having to depend on strong pain medication had a negative effect on my sister’s life. She became severely depressed. This combination of depression and chronic pain has affected all aspects of her life. At the end of September, she was let go from her job because she was required to take medical leave. It was around this same time that Molly met someone who had the same rare disease approximately 3 years ago. The ironic part of this whole story is not only does my sister and her friend both share a diagnosis; they both were strickened with this disease in the right kidney. In most cases; LPHS (when diagnosed) occurs to the left kidney. Andie mentioned that through her extensive research she found two doctors in the Dallas Fort Worth area that could perform a procedure called an auto kidney transplant. This procedure, which took place March of 2013, allowed Andie to be disease and pain free for almost three years! ! As you can imagine, this gave Molly, her husband and her family hope that she could finally be cured of this awful disease. Molly met with the two recommended surgeons. After a thorough review of her medical history; they determined that she would be a prime candidate for surgery.
For those of you who know Molly can agree she is an amazing human being. She has a heart of gold and would do anything for her husband, family, friends and all furry animals. She is a caring loving wife, daughter, daughter-in law, sister and mother to four-legged children. Her amazing love for all animals has led her to an extraordinary 20+ year career as a veterinary technician.
As you can imagine; Molly and her husband have incurred a great deal of medical expenses over the years. Unfortunately, their insurance will not cover all the costs associated with this surgery. She has been unemployed since September and will not be able to seek new employment until after she has fully recovered. All of the donations will be used for her medical expenses (past and future) and will help with living expenses during her 6-week recovery period.
Molly’s personal goal is to live a pain free life again. Molly is looking forward to getting back to her fun-silly self and spending time with her friends and family. The thought of having an opportunity to regain her quality of life is what drives her. She has missed out on so many things like hiking, camping and nature walks with her husband. Mollly is also planning to return to yoga, her favorite exercise. She wants to get back to the work she loves to do, which includes taking care of animals.
It would be greatly appreciated if everyone could please keep Molly in your thoughts and prayers as she embarks on this next journey in her life. Thank you, in advance, for all for your love and support. We appreciate it from the bottom of our hearts.
To give you a little backstory, Molly first started having pain in her right kidney accompanied with blood in her urine when she was 25 years old. The doctors could not diagnose her at first. They believed that her pain was solely caused by kidney stones. Unfortunately; this was proven to not be the case. Over the next 7 years; numerous emergency room and doctor’s visits, and ungodly number of intrusive medical tests run; the doctors decided to remove Molly’s gall bladder hoping it would alleviate the pain. Not long after this procedure; it was evident that the severe pain was coming from another unknown source.
Molly was sent to 2 kidney specialists and 2 urologists all of which performed more invasive testing; none of which could provide a diagnosis. Another dead end. Molly was referred to a UT Southwestern Nephrologist Specialist who examined her and ALL of her medical records. He said he had heard of a kidney condition called LPHS and thought all her symptoms seemed to match that diagnosis, however the only way to rule out any other kidney condition that can mimic the same symptoms was to have a kidney biopsy.
Molly agreed. She was sent to a team of nephrologists in Dallas. They performed the kidney biopsy and ruled out any other kidney condition. Their diagnosis by exclusion was LPHS. The doctors did not provide any cure or treatments options. Instead she was referred to a pain management doctor. Our sister did not want to accept the diagnosis and was determined not to be on pain medicine for the rest of her life, so she continue to seek other opinions and see other kidney specialists. Unfortunately, Molly received the same diagnosis EVERY time. No permanent treatment options offered; just pain management.
As time went on; Her episodes of pain became more intense and more frequent (it was chronic – no breaks in-between her pain at all.) 5 years ago; the pain became so severe that Molly was prescribed opiates and narcotics medication to combat this incapacitating pain.
As you can imagine, suffering from that much pain and having to depend on strong pain medication had a negative effect on my sister’s life. She became severely depressed. This combination of depression and chronic pain has affected all aspects of her life. At the end of September, she was let go from her job because she was required to take medical leave. It was around this same time that Molly met someone who had the same rare disease approximately 3 years ago. The ironic part of this whole story is not only does my sister and her friend both share a diagnosis; they both were strickened with this disease in the right kidney. In most cases; LPHS (when diagnosed) occurs to the left kidney. Andie mentioned that through her extensive research she found two doctors in the Dallas Fort Worth area that could perform a procedure called an auto kidney transplant. This procedure, which took place March of 2013, allowed Andie to be disease and pain free for almost three years! ! As you can imagine, this gave Molly, her husband and her family hope that she could finally be cured of this awful disease. Molly met with the two recommended surgeons. After a thorough review of her medical history; they determined that she would be a prime candidate for surgery.
For those of you who know Molly can agree she is an amazing human being. She has a heart of gold and would do anything for her husband, family, friends and all furry animals. She is a caring loving wife, daughter, daughter-in law, sister and mother to four-legged children. Her amazing love for all animals has led her to an extraordinary 20+ year career as a veterinary technician.
As you can imagine; Molly and her husband have incurred a great deal of medical expenses over the years. Unfortunately, their insurance will not cover all the costs associated with this surgery. She has been unemployed since September and will not be able to seek new employment until after she has fully recovered. All of the donations will be used for her medical expenses (past and future) and will help with living expenses during her 6-week recovery period.
Molly’s personal goal is to live a pain free life again. Molly is looking forward to getting back to her fun-silly self and spending time with her friends and family. The thought of having an opportunity to regain her quality of life is what drives her. She has missed out on so many things like hiking, camping and nature walks with her husband. Mollly is also planning to return to yoga, her favorite exercise. She wants to get back to the work she loves to do, which includes taking care of animals.
It would be greatly appreciated if everyone could please keep Molly in your thoughts and prayers as she embarks on this next journey in her life. Thank you, in advance, for all for your love and support. We appreciate it from the bottom of our hearts.
Organizer
Molly Sager Harvell
Organizer
McKinney, TX