Pflugerville daughter donates kidney to mother
FOX 7 Austin has the story of a Pflugerville woman who gave her mom an incredible gift. She became a living kidney donor. Like her, if you are healthy, you too have a spare that can save a life
PFLUGERVILLE, Texas – April is “Donate Life Month.”
According to federal data, nearly 100,000 Americans are on the waiting list for a kidney transplant.
Here in Texas, the number is close to 10,000. But, if you’re healthy, most of us have a spare that can save a life.
Kidney transplants
What they’re saying:
“It is, and it has to be very safe,” said Dr. James Lim, a transplant surgeon and Surgical Transplant Program Director at the Kidney Transplant Center at St. David’s North Austin Medical Center. “We’re putting someone through an operation that they don’t have to have. And, that’s what’s so special about any and all donors.”
Dr. Lim said because the wait for a kidney from a deceased donor can be as long as seven years, depending on blood type, living kidney donors are desperately needed, and they tend to have better long-term outcomes.
“On average, a deceased donor kidney transplant lasts around 8 to 10 years,” he said. “A living donor transplant lasts around 18 years. I wish there were more Aprils in the year, because I don’t think the donors, both the live donors or the deceased donors’ families, get enough recognition for what they do.”
Pflugerville woman donates kidney to her mother
The backstory:
When it comes to living donors, when the recipient is someone you love, the decision is even more of a “no-brainer.”
“When you love your mom, or you love your parents, it doesn’t feel like it’s a sacrifice,” said 33-year-old Amanda Canary of Pflugerville. “It just feels like, ‘why wouldn’t I do this?”
Her 59-year-old mother, Michele Kirkpatrick, of Georgetown, had been living with kidney disease for more than 30 years when she found out her kidney function had dropped to the point where a transplant was necessary.
“Feeling just a constant sense of exhaustion,” Kirkpatrick explained. “Honestly, I couldn’t sleep enough. And, that’s hard for me because I’m a go’er.”
After undergoing extensive testing at St. David’s, to make sure Canary was healthy enough to donate, she found out she was a match for her mom. And, they underwent the transplant surgery on Nov. 5, 2024.
“Our last hug was really emotional,” Canary recalled. “But, I knew in a short amount of time, she was going to feel so much better and this will all be worth it.”
Kirkpatrick, being a mom, was more worried about her daughter.
“She left home that morning with two little girls at home,” said Kirkpatrick. “And, my main concern was her. And, I remember when I woke up from the surgery, the first thing I asked was ‘how’s my daughter?’ The only thing I wanted to know is, is she okay?”
Amanda Canary and her mother Michele Kirkpatrick
And, yes, mom and daughter were both just fine.
“I had a lot of people tell me, she’s going to feel better than you,” Canary remembered. “You’re losing something, she’s gaining something. So, to see her lap me, the first time we were walking in the halls, I was just so happy.”
Almost six months later, both have recovered.
“I’ve gotten to see my surgeon multiple times and to get that confidence from them that I’m doing great and my body is working and doing the things it needs to do, with one kidney,” said Canary. “So, that’s amazing.”
And, Kirkpatrick is enjoying the gift of good health.
“Overall, at this point, I feel really good,” she said. “I have a lot of energy. Just, my function is great. My creatinine level went from 4.6 down to 1.0, which is normal. And, that’s with one extraordinary kidney.”
An extraordinary kidney from her daughter, transplanted by Dr. Lim.
“It feels great to be part of that team that’s able to help not just the donor, but also the recipient, obviously, get a second chance at life,” he said. “So, that’s really great to see. Because there aren’t too many times when we can actually schedule a second chance at life. And, that’s what it is, we’re scheduling someone’s second chance at life.”
In addition to praising the transplant team at St. David’s, both Kirkpatrick and Canary, said their family, friends, and church members helped so much during their recoveries.
What you can do:
If you’d like to learn more about living kidney donation, click on these links:
The Source: Information from interviews conducted by FOX 7 Austin’s Rebecca Thomas