Happy Kidney Transplant Anniversary Cruz!!

Today, February 10Th, is the one year anniversary of my son's kidney transplant. This time last year we were at Hershey Medical Center and I was the first one to go into surgery so they could take my kidney to give to Cruz. Our surgeries lasted a total of seven hours, but this experience will be with me for a lifetime.

In the Spring of 2008 we had been treating Cruz for high blood pressure for about a year when his family physician called me to say that he had just received Cruz's weekly blood work and that he was going into renal (kidney) failure. He told me that he needed to get to Hershey Medical Center asap! This is where we met his two amazing and brilliant pediatric nephrologist,(kidney doctors)Dr. Steven Wassner and Dr. Deborah Kees-Foltz. Briefly, I thought my nightmare had ended because we found doctors that were going to monitor Cruz and help his kidneys with medication and diet, but I soon realized that it had only just begun.

We were taking care of Cruz as best as we could but his creatinine levels were worsening faster and faster. By the time fall came around Cruz was on the strictest diet plan. I remember asking" What am I going to feed my kid,cotton balls?" Cruz eventually got too sick to go to school. He had no energy at all and was very pail. His doctors said that it was time for dialysis. The doctors explained that Peritoneal dialysis would be best for him. This is where a catheter is placed in your abdomen lining and a machine called the Cycler fills your peritoneum with a sugary fluid. To put it into easy terms, the fluid absorbs the toxins in your blood and then is drained into a bucket where it then fills you back up and drains you over and over again during a ten hour cycle.

Cruz had his peritoneal catheter surgically placed in October of 2008. We spent two and a half long weeks in the hospital. Cruz had complications with his oxygen levels
and ended up having other minor procedures done. During our stay we learned how to use the Cycler and how to prep Cruz every night to be hooked up to it. All of this happened so quickly and it was so overwhelming, I had no time to do anything else but focus completely on my child. There was an incident with his oxygen level that was so bad that twice in a row it had dropped to zero and his lips turned blue. Talk about a very scary moment in my life! Whew! He left the hospital with some energy, a catheter and no tonsils or adenoids.

Myself and Cruz's dad, Mike, were like medical pros after leaving the hospital. We would hook Cruz up to his Cycler every night at eight pm. Cruz would cry at first because he said that it hurt. It took some time to get him use to it. Cruz went back to school with his catheter under his shirt. He thought it was cool to show all of his friends his new piece of equipment and he was feeling great. Now, it was time to start testing for transplant donors. Mike and I happily went to every test the doctors had to perform on us to see if we were a match for Cruz. We had to do numerous blood test, test to check our hearts, and psychological test. The doctors chose me because of my size and I couldn't have been more happy. Cruz was a little upset at first because he didn't want a "girl" kidney. We all laughed at that.

The transplant was scheduled for February 10Th, 2009 and we had to be at the hospital at five am. The night before, Cruz's teacher came over and said and beautiful prayer with our family and friends. I was completely at ease that all of this was in God"s hands. We both went in to get our IVs and all the bells and whistles hooked up to us. I gave my family and Cruz a big hug and told them I loved them and then I was shipped off to surgery. They did my nephrectomy laparoscopically and pulled my kidney from a small incision above my pubic bone. When I woke up I was in extreme pain but it was all worth it. They inserted my kidney into Cruz by cutting a 10 inch incision down the middle of his belly. His surgeon was Dr. Aktar Khan and he was amazing.

The next three weeks was filled with many complications for Cruz, although his new kidney was doing excellent. He ended up going back to surgery a few days after because they wanted to make sure there wasn't an obstruction in his bowel. It turned out that his bowels were paralyzed from all of the anesthesia and surgery. When we finally got home,Cruz and I recovered together with so much support from our family,friends and community. Cruz's teacher came over everyday to catch him up on things he'd missed.

A year has passed so quickly and Cruz's kidney is still doing well. He takes many medications and has to get blood work and shots twice a week, but it's still all worth having my little boy to cuddle everyday. We recently found out Cruz has liver issues and may possibly need a liver transplant down the road. Hopefully, it's way down the road,but only time will tell. I urge everyone to have "organ donor" on their drivers license. Happy Anniversary Cruz!! I love you.