At 24 years old, Melissa was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease after giving birth to her second daughter. After her third child, a son, was born, she lost all kidney function. Melissa's choice to undergo home-based hemodialysis enabled her to continue her full time job, raise two daughters and a severely autistic son on her own, and advocate for kidney patients. On April 16, 2012, Melissa's wait of nearly ten years for a transplant finally came to an end. Melissa looks forward to connecting with the family of her life-saving donor in the near future so she can share with them what their generosity has made possible.

Melissa's Story

At 24 years old, Melissa was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease after giving birth to her second daughter. After her third child, a son, was born 15 weeks early, Melissa was on her way to visit her new baby in the neonatal ICU when she passed out in the hospital elevator due to an overload of fluid and blood toxicity. She had lost all kidney function – both kidneys were eventually removed – and she immediately went on dialysis to sustain her life.

Melissa's son was born legally blind and came home on oxygen 5 months after Melissa started dialysis. She began her dialysis treatments at a clinic while trying to care for her newborn son, but when a nurse suggested home hemodialysis, Melissa jumped at the opportunity to become more self-sufficient. After six weeks of extensive training and the implantation of a catheter in her arm, Melissa was able to set up a machine in her bedroom and dialyzed on her own every other night for eight hours while she slept.

While working a full time job at DST Systems, raising two daughters and a severely autistic son on her own, and maintaining a stringent dialysis schedule, Melissa has still found time to advocate for her cause. Through the loving support of her family and friends, Melissa has held fundraisers and spoken publicly about her experience in order to promote awareness of kidney disease.

On April 16, 2012, Melissa awoke to a 3 a.m. phone call from her doctor informing her that a donated kidney had been matched to her. Just two months before her 10-year anniversary of starting dialysis and being placed on a kidney donation wait list, Melissa received a kidney from a deceased donor, giving her a chance for a new life.

One week after her transplant, a biopsy showed signs of rejection, often the body's natural reaction to a foreign organ. Following aggressive treatments of chemotherapy, anti-rejection medications, steroids and six weeks of living in a quarantined house without her children, Melissa's kidney is now functioning without the aid of dialysis. A year and a half post-transplant, Melissa's kidney is functioning and allowing her to continue with her mission.

Melissa looks forward to connecting with the family of her life-saving donor in the near future so she can share with them what their generosity has made possible.