Jennifer Wexler, Living Donor
On April 16, I will be participating in Donor Dash 2023. I am walking with my daughter and her kids to raise awareness of non-directed living kidney donation. On January 5, 2023, I had the privilege of having one of my kidneys removed and sent to a stranger in need in Massachusetts.
For several years I had been interested in the idea of becoming a living donor after meeting my daughter Jamie's friend, Janet, who had just been the recipient of a living donor liver. Her entire life changed in a day, and her health began to improve immediately. Unfortunately, she had suffered for years from an autoimmune condition that had caused her liver to start to fail.
Not knowing anyone who needed a kidney but seeing the immediate return of Janet's health made me consider giving my kidney to someone who needed it most through a non-directed donation.
I began researching the possibility of me – a 55-year-old grandmother – being qualified to participate in such an amazing process. I chose Penn Medicine as my transplant center and began the preliminary lab work. Imagine my surprise when everything was fine, and I was given the green light to proceed to the next step!
The kind, encouraging, and knowledgeable staff put my mind at ease every step of the way. Ashley was my patient care advocate; she became my friend as I navigated all the testing, evaluations, and appointments. My excitement to be approved continued to grow, and I will NEVER forget the day she called and told me I had been approved for a donation!
I was sitting on the beach in the middle of October with some friends who didn't even know I was trying to donate. Not shouting my good news at that moment was nearly impossible but I wanted my amazing husband Bill to be the first to know. At that point, things really began to move quickly.
Surgery was scheduled for right after the holidays. I experienced one of the most emotion-filled Christmas seasons, knowing that I was about to give someone an opportunity to be healthy once again. The day of my surgery was one of the best days of my life. Recovery was textbook, and my Penn Medicine team was informative and supportive through it all.
I am forever changed by having gone through this experience. Knowing that someone was given a second chance at life by receiving a new kidney brings me joy every single day. I will continue to advocate for non-directed donations because we all have a spare to share. The benefit to a human being in need far exceeds any inconvenience I may have experienced.
Learn more or register to be screened as a living donor from Penn Medicine's Center for Living Donation