I'm sorry for the long delay in posts, I'll make up for it soon, I promise! But right now I've got another friend in need of some thoughts, prayers, kind words, donations, whatever you can give at the moment. My friend, Cheriz, has a friend, Laura, who is in great need for a lung transplant.... like, yesterday!
Like Cheriz says in her blog, its hard to think about or even talk about it sometimes, but the reality is: this could be me one day. There may come a day when CF gets the best of my lungs and the only option to extend my life would be to trade these mucus-soaked ones for a fresh new pair. Sounds easy, right? Not quite. Its a long, painful, grueling, and expensive process!
PLEASE follow this link (http://www.cheriz.org/2014/01/calling-all-who-care.html) to Cheriz's blog to read about everything newly-married Laura is going through at the moment and see if there is any way you could help her out. Thank you!!!
Showing posts with label Transplant. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Transplant. Show all posts
Friday, January 31, 2014
Sunday, December 16, 2012
CFer Dies Of Cancer
Above my blog posts is a little box that shares any type of article or story in the news about Cystic Fibrosis and today, this one caught my eye: "Cystic Fibrosis sufferer given smoker's lungs in transplant dies of cancer...".
Unfortunately, transplant patients are at a higher risk of developing cancer after a transplant (like my friend, Joe), so that wasn't really what grabbed me about this. The part that I was startled by was the "given smoker's lungs in transplant". I just don't know what to think about this. I don't think I would want a smoker's lungs if I had to get a transplant. If I'm going to get a transplant, I don't want another set of damaged, crappy lungs - I'd want the best ones possible. But at the same time, the article makes a good point in saying that about 40% of organ donors are smokers. So if smokers weren't allowed to be organ donors, that would decrease the available donated organs by ~40%, which makes things difficult when there are so many people on the transplant list.
I don't really know where I'm going with this post because I don't really know how I feel about it. The article states that patients are more likely to live longer by getting smoker's lungs than rejecting them and waiting for another non-smoker's set to come along. I guess this just surprised me - I assumed that they wouldn't give a transplant patient smoker's lungs, but I haven't looked into the topic too much. I guess there's such a great need, that they'll take any lungs that are better than the ones the patient currently has...
They don't say for sure, in the article, if this woman developed lung cancer because of the smoker's lungs or not, but I can understand why her family, and new husband, would be so upset by her too soon death after transplant. Unfortunately the woman was not aware that she was receiving smoker's lungs going into the transplant, and her husband said that if she would have known, he thinks she would have not accepted them.
This just makes me think: How picky should you be when you're desperate for new lungs? I don't know if 'picky' is the right word... Would you reject smoker's lungs in hopes that a new, healthier set would come along? But then how much longer would you be waiting? Would you be able to live long enough for a second match? Or do you accept the smoker's lungs because they're probably better than the ones you've got right now? Should/Do hospitals have to disclose information about the donor (smoker vs nonsmoker) to the recipient?
Again, I don't know a ton about the transplant process, so I'm sorry if I seem uninformed - because I really am. This just got me thinking...
Unfortunately, transplant patients are at a higher risk of developing cancer after a transplant (like my friend, Joe), so that wasn't really what grabbed me about this. The part that I was startled by was the "given smoker's lungs in transplant". I just don't know what to think about this. I don't think I would want a smoker's lungs if I had to get a transplant. If I'm going to get a transplant, I don't want another set of damaged, crappy lungs - I'd want the best ones possible. But at the same time, the article makes a good point in saying that about 40% of organ donors are smokers. So if smokers weren't allowed to be organ donors, that would decrease the available donated organs by ~40%, which makes things difficult when there are so many people on the transplant list.
I don't really know where I'm going with this post because I don't really know how I feel about it. The article states that patients are more likely to live longer by getting smoker's lungs than rejecting them and waiting for another non-smoker's set to come along. I guess this just surprised me - I assumed that they wouldn't give a transplant patient smoker's lungs, but I haven't looked into the topic too much. I guess there's such a great need, that they'll take any lungs that are better than the ones the patient currently has...
They don't say for sure, in the article, if this woman developed lung cancer because of the smoker's lungs or not, but I can understand why her family, and new husband, would be so upset by her too soon death after transplant. Unfortunately the woman was not aware that she was receiving smoker's lungs going into the transplant, and her husband said that if she would have known, he thinks she would have not accepted them.
This just makes me think: How picky should you be when you're desperate for new lungs? I don't know if 'picky' is the right word... Would you reject smoker's lungs in hopes that a new, healthier set would come along? But then how much longer would you be waiting? Would you be able to live long enough for a second match? Or do you accept the smoker's lungs because they're probably better than the ones you've got right now? Should/Do hospitals have to disclose information about the donor (smoker vs nonsmoker) to the recipient?
Again, I don't know a ton about the transplant process, so I'm sorry if I seem uninformed - because I really am. This just got me thinking...
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