Brandi Kirkpatrick is a teacher at a school, where she learned that a parent of a student was in need of a kidney transplant. Gwen McNair-Riley had been on the transplant list for five years before last week’s kidney transplant. From Brandy.
“I can’t believe we only had surgery two days ago,” said Kirkpatrick. “I feel fine thanks to a new laparoscopic noninvasive procedure.”
Yeah, that laparoscopic surgery is some good stuff. I was out of the hospital the next day, and shopping the day after that.
Through tears of joy, McNair sobbed,” She has given me the gift of life for sure! I will now be able to travel, get full time work, and work on my degree.”
Hurray!
Now, about the supposed rarity of interracial kidney transplants, as noted in this article, regular readers here have seen any number of stories about someone donating a kidney to someone of another race. My own living kidney donation was to a man of another race.
It isn’t hard to match someone of another race. We don’t have black blood or white blood or Latino blood, as this article might lead you to believe. Antibodies that can nix a match have nothing to do with the color of your skin. But sure, the more alike you are to the person who receives your kidney, the less the chance of rejection.
Congrats to Brandi and Gwen; though their transplant situation is hardly “rare,” it is beautiful.
Good news that these two people came together and that the transplant was a success!
I find it really disturbing however, that a news article can print such ridiculous inaccurate information regarding ‘issues’ with an interracial transplant. I can only imagine how the donor and recipient responded to this ‘news story’. Unbelievable.