Dress Rehearsal Went Well

When Fred went through his first transplant in 1999 he did not actually get his new liver until the third call.  UCLA first called us down and had us wait in the ER while their surgeons evaluated the liver.  After a few hours (which seemed like a day), they told us to go home.  The liver in question was too fatty and not suitable for transplant.


We were completely new to the idea of getting a call that wasn't THE CALL.


The second call in 1999, Fred was called down to the hospital and was admitted right away.  He was started on IV anti-rejection medication, but was told that the liver came from a donor who had brain stem cancer.  That there was a miniscule chance the cancer could be transmitted from donor to recipient, and that they only offered a transplant from a donor with cancer to a recipient who currently had cancer.   Fred was told that someone had jumped over him and was now #1 on the list who also had cancer.  This anti-rejection medication and preparation was to get Fred ready for transplant should the surgeons discover Recipient #1 had cancer outside the liver -- this liver would go to Fred as a backup.  Fred unflinching said he hoped #1 got the liver.  And that is what happened.  They unhooked Fred and told him to go home.


The third call was Fred's liver.  It was the one that was meant to last him all these years.  The third call, he was admitted and brought to OR with no hesitation.


Well, this morning, we had our dress rehearsal for Liver #2.  We got a call from the on-call transplant coordinator for KUMed at around 7:30am.  She said they were in the very early stages of dealing with the organ procurement agency and had been notified a liver was available.  She wanted to know how far away we were from the hospital and told Fred not to eat or drink anything until we heard back.  Then she updated us for Fred to take his meds and have a light breakfast.  She said it could be a while until they knew more.  Stand by.  So we did the drill.  Shower. Pack. Clean. Pray.


At about 10:30 this morning we got the call that the surgeon was evaluating the liver and for Fred to NOT eat or drink anything else.  She would call us back in a couple of hours.  But only 20 minutes later KUMed called to say they were sorry.  The liver that was available was not suitable for transplant.


Feeling grateful for our prior experiences, which kept us cool as a couple of cucumbers.  And, we were definitely relieved to see Fred pop up on their radar.