HOW POLYCYSTIC KIDNEY DISEASE (PKD) HAS IMPACTED  MY LIFE

• I was first diagnosed with PKD in 2011 during a routine doctor's visit in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  At the time I had no idea I had PKD since there were no outward signs or symptoms, but those PKD symptoms did eventually come.

• Kidney failure related issues slowly but surely crept into my life little by little over the last ten years. PKD increasingly limits  what I can or cannot do and to what degree. 

• My PKD kidneys continues to become more painful, uncomfortable and debilitating as time progresses. Hand tremors have started to become an issue as well.  All this is becoming the new normal for me.

• Because of my PKD, I've had to make some difficult life changes over the years like: quit my job and business as a Landscape Architect, sell the house (upkeep became too much), limit travel, discontinue volunteering (including mission trips) and spend less time at church and with family and friends as well as doing the things I enjoy.

• In the last three plus years, I unexpectedly started losing weight. My weight loss was due to a loss of appetite which turns out to be a side effect of PKD. It is an ongoing concern for me.

• Fatigue sets in a lot quicker as time goes by and is accompanied by pain, nausea and shortness of breath at times. Nowadays I spend more and more waking hours sitting in my lounge chair or lying in bed resting than being active, productive and enjoying life.

• The PKD cysts in both of my kidneys do occasionally burst and bleed when under physical stress. This usually brings on more kidney pain, infections, anemia, extreme fatigue, and an occasionally trip to the hospital or ER.

• Anymore, sickness brought on by PKD issues has become an ongoing burden and unwelcomed companion that just will not go away. Every day is now become a "wait and see how I feel" way of life. I really can't make plans ahead of time for almost everything.

• My PKD kidneys declined to the point where I am hovering around End Stage Renal Failure (Stage 5, see chart on next page). My situation is becoming more dire, to say the least, with each passing day.

• I feel bad for my wife because my limitations end up becoming hers as well.

• Through it all I have learned to "Cherish the good days, endure the bad ones and lean on the Lord... always!"

A KIDNEY FROM A DECEASED (CADAVER) DONOR is what I will receive if I am able to get a kidney while on the UNOS kidney transplant waitlist. The down side is that I will probably be on the UNOS waitlist for a minimum of 3 to 5 years before anything would possibly happen due to the shortage of cadaver kidneys. That's a long time to wait especially if I do not even know if I will still be alive by then.  A deceased donor kidney also has a lower transplant success rate than a healthier living donor kidney. 

For those reasons, it is important for me to seek out and obtain a KIDNEY FROM A LIVING DONOR right NOW! This is considered the GOLD STANDARD for kidney transplants. It is a healthier and more viable choice with a shorter wait time to receive a kidney and less time spent on dialysis. A living donor kidney transplant can be done as soon as ONE year, maybe sooner which will minimize uncertainies and result in me getting to a better and healthier quality of life a lot quicker. See "Living Donor vs. Cadaver Donor" chart  below for more information. 

With that said, my eGFR number will  continue to drop. At what rate I don't know. I do know an eGFR number of 0 is not going to keep me here on this earth. I am praying that God will somehow, some way put a LIVING KIDNEY DONOR in my life so that things will not progress to that point! (Honestly, I really don't think I will make it another 10 years, if at that, without one.)

If you truly do want to consider moving forward and take the next big step, just think of the priceless gift you would be giving... the gift of LIFE with many more years to enjoy it! All I am asking right now is that you do your homework. Hopefully, the more you know the more comfortable you will become with the idea of possibly being a kidney donor for me.

With a new living donor kidney my health will be in a much better place and life will be worth living, more abundantly. A successful kidney transplant would allow me, once again, to be able to enjoy a better quality of life, spend more time with family, friends and my dog as well as doing those things I use to love to do. I would be able to be active again in church related projects to "Bless the Rest" and serve the community through volunteering efforts! I will be able to enjoy retirement, travel again and enjoy outdoor activities once more! I truly will be forever grateful, and so will those close to me for the sacrifice that would be made on my behalf.

Finally, hopefully, if I do get a chance to get a new kidney and my health improves, I would like to pay it forward, somehow, some day, in some meaningful way. I truly believe there still has to be a greater purpose for my life. Only a new kidney and time will tell.  A LIVING KIDNEY DONOR will certainly give me a better chance of getting there a lot sooner!

Can you SPARE a kidney? Only you can answer that question! Please consider doing so!!!

P.S. At a minimum, please tell others about me. I would appreciate it if you could consider sharing this website, www.DonateKidneyForMark.com, on your social media pages and anywhere else you can think of placing it to help get the word out. Thank you!