Two San Diego couples who were looking for healthy kidneys today described their "paired donor" transplants, which were the region's first transplants of their kind.
Patty Ford and Paul Bryan suffered from failing kidneys and sought transplants. Their spouses offered to donate, but their body chemistry and blood types weren't the right match. But then physicians at UCSD learned that Patty's husband was a match for Paul, and Paul's wife was a match for Patty. That resulted in successful transplants last Wednesday. Today these four people, who have one healthy kidney each, spoke of their experience. Patty Ford fought back tears as she thanked Robyn Bryan for her donation.
"Robin gave me a better, sorry, a better quality of life. And frees up my time from going to dialysis," Ford said.
UCSD physicians say it's rare to find couples with similar needs and matching kidneys. But it may become more common as donor databases help identify paired donors.
