Olga Dolores Gómez

Type of Donation:       liver and kidney recipient

Age and Location:      Age 59 – Ontario, CA

Date of Transplant:           10/19/2015

Sponsor:                      Honored by OneLegacy

OLGA’S STORY

Olga was married to Ricardo for 28 years. She had enjoyed boating, quad riding, camping and of course, exploring with her partner in crime. In 2008, she was topping the scale at 300 pounds and knew that it was time to do something before she became ill. She prepared for bypass surgery. However, her husband had been diagnosed with stage 3b lung cancer with only 2 years to live. Everything was put on hold to proceed with his treatments. In 2009, she underwent the surgery with Ricardo by her side and began a new chapter of her life. In the meantime, trying to lose weight, working, and taking care of her husband, she really paid no mind to her health. They lived a normal life, still playing as usual.

In 2012, Olga started to notice that her left leg would drag at the end of the day. Her ankle and foot would swell. In the meantime, Ricardo passed on December 3, 2013, devastating Olga. Four months later, her father passed, and her mother was becoming ill with dementia. She tried returning to work, however, her health began to fail. She was questioning her judgment, putting on weight, although not eating. Normal body functions were not normal. She began testing with the same Oncologist who used to tend to her husband. He said to her, “Something is wrong, very wrong. We need to get to the bottom of it.” Her health began to deteriorate. Her leg dragged, she was unable to go to the restroom, yet her belly was getting bigger and bigger. It got to the point that she would have to go to the hospital to have bodily fluids removed. As for the stairs in her home, she could barely make it up. Her legs would give out to where she ended up on the floor for hours until a neighbor came looking for her.

After going in and out of the hospital in early 2015, she was placed in a convalescent home. (Unfortunately, she lost her mother that April.) Her motor skills were going, and she was unable to fend for herself. She couldn’t attend her mother’s funeral. She needed assistance for the simplest of things, such as eating, rolling over and sitting up. On September 13, 2015, her sister Anna came to visit her and found her mumbling and delirious, in and out of consciousness. She was rushed to Kaiser where she and her family were told that her liver was hanging on by a thread and her kidneys were now failing. She was not expected to make it through the night. She was then rushed to Kaiser, Los Angeles, where it was determined that if she was transferred to UCLA, she may have a chance. With no motor skills, unable to speak and losing vision in her left eye, she fell into a coma on September 14, 2015. She was intubated for 14 days.

There was internal bleeding from an unknown source. Again, Olga was not expected to make it, but she did. When she woke, she was fragile, weak, tube fed and unable to determine reality from fiction. Her skin was so dark, it almost looked like a burn victim, and she had no motor skills. Doctors said she needed to be strong enough to make it through surgery to be placed on both the liver and kidney transplant list. Remember, there is no machine for a liver, however, hope for kidney function with dialysis. She learned how to breathe on her own and improved all her vitals, showing she could make that surgery.

Fortunately, the notification came. There were two possible donors available. Someone said “yes,” and Olga had a chance to live. Not only two livers to choose from, but four kidneys as well; what are the odds? Transplant surgery on October 19, 2015, at 5:30 am. Her sister Dora and her husband were there, blessed her and off she went. Hours later, her sister Carmen went to Recovery and saw that her skin color was changing. Things were happening for the good. A second opportunity to live! As she recovered, she had to learn to walk, speak, hold a fork and swallow. All important functions before she could go home. Her skin was peeling like a snake in the shape of her hands, toes, and fingers. Because of the damage to her throat, she had to drink and eat all food with a thickening agent and learn how to swallow. One of the biggest challenges she faced was distinguishing reality from fiction; it was so confusing.

She was released on November 12, 2019, to her sister Carmen and brother-in-law Rafael Delgado. She went home in a wheelchair, graduated to a walker, then a cane. Eventually, she was able to climb the stairs in her home and live her life there.

She now lives alone, travels and volunteers with OneLegacy where she advocates for donation. She also volunteers for her church ministry, feeding the less fortunate. She thanks her donor and promises to live the best transplant life ever. Someone said “YES” and she lives!

Unfortunately, her kidney gave out in July of 2021. She is on peritoneal dialysis and on the transplant list with over 100,000 others. She is thankful for the “second opportunity,” “Segunda Oportunidad,” and to her donor. She hopes to receive another kidney soon.