A Second Chance at Life: Part 1 - "The Call"

The next two days represent an unusual anniversary for Ken but I decided to share this story in memory of the events that took place eight years ago.

Ken was diagnosed with a liver disease  known as primary sclerosing cholangitis in the Spring of 1989.  This diagnosis came about a year after he had graduated from high school and just weeks before we got married.
 

Nearly 17 years after the original diagnosis, Ken was then diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma - a type of liver cancer in the biliary tree.  About 10-15% of people diagnosed with PSC will also be diagnosed with bile duct cancer, which is normally fatal within six months.

In the 1990's, Mayo Clinic developed a protocol that would open the door for liver transplantation for some people diagnosed with cholangiocarcinoma.  Otherwise, this door was not an option for this aggressive type of cancer.  Ken began the "Mayo Protocol" at the beginning of 2006.  He had to receive aggressive radiation treatments as well as oral chemotherapy for about two months.  He then underwent exploratory surgery to check for metastases before being placed on the liver transplant list.  This surgery showed no spread of the liver cancer, but did reveal a type of kidney cancer.  (A story for another day.) Ken was officially placed on the list and continued to receive chemotherapy while waiting for a transplant.  According to the protocol, the liver transplant needed to occur by the end of the sixth month of the protocol.  Ken was granted exception points for his MELD score in order to increase his chance of receiving a transplant in time.

On the last day of the six month of this protocol, we received a phone call from Ken's transplant coordinator that a liver may be available for him.  This call came at 3am but we were asked to wait for another call before actually driving to the hospital.  

Interestingly, we had prayed that Ken NOT receive a call for the transplant on this weekend.  We had a guest from out of state so we were hoping to enjoy the weekend visiting with her.  We also did not want to be caught up in the traffic from the EAA Fly-In in Oshkosh.  By 6am we had received a second phone call telling us to drive the four hours to Madison for a probable transplant.  

As it turned out, it was a huge blessing to have a guest at this time because we were able to leave the kids at home.  Ken said good-bye to each one knowing that he may not see them until after the transplant.  They were 12, 11 and 7 years old on this day.  

We did not know anything about the donor for Ken's first transplant for nearly two years.  In 2008 we did receive a letter from a wife who had lost her husband tragically in a motorcycle accident on July 30, 2006.  On this day we remember the gift that this man gave to our family by being an organ donor. Because of his gift, Ken received a second chance at life.