Turlock woman to receive lifesaving transplant from unexpected friend


Lupus is a cruel autoimmune disease that can attack skin, joints and sometimes organs. The disease affects nearly five million people worldwide. It often leads to kidney failure and is a long process for those waiting for a donor.
According to Sierra Donor Services, there are 117, 951 people in the U.S. waiting for a lifesaving organ transplant and the majority are in need of a kidney donation.
22 people die each day on the waiting list and 91-percent of the people are from minority or multiracial backgrounds. Sharon Stencel is a living donor nurse at the UC Davis Transplant Center. She said at her center alone there are over 1,200 people on the waiting list. 
"A lot of people have the misunderstanding that you have to be a direct relative to be a good match,” Stencel said.
She went into detail that relation is not of importance. Dr. Huang, a specialist at the center, said they are urging people from minority or mixed racial backgrounds to test to see if they qualify as a donor. Dr. Huang also added that minority women are disproportionately affected by Lupus and have the greatest need, like Isela Scroggins, a hairstylist in Turlock, California. 
The 38-year-old has lived with Lupus since 2003 and has been on a list for a kidney transplant for two years. After a long wait, Isela has finally found a match in her good friend from beauty college, Rocio Valencia. 
"We met in beauty college and I asked her if she wanted to be part of my gang,” Scroggins laughed. 
Both women talked about how their friendship evolved. Rocio, the quiet-giggly one, and Isela, the outgoing one. A friendship formed but they would have never thought it would be lifesaving one. Tuesday was a special day, the last nail appointment Isela had with Rocio before the big operation. 
"I wanted to help and if this was something I could do, I wanted to do it for her,” Valencia said. 
The disease can manifest in many ways and Rocio said she was sick of watching her friend in pain. Isela would hook up to a dialysis machine for nine to 10 hours a night.
"It was really tough knowing that I have these two little girls and the reality was that I may not be around to see them grow or get old with my husband,” Scroggins said. “Waiting for someone to say 'hey I am willing to go through the process and donate a kidney to you', that is a big deal”. 
Several friends and family members tried but weren’t Isela’s match and when she was about to give up, her old friend from beauty college tested. 
"So you were a match? And a very close one?” ABC10’s Anne Di Grazia asked. 
“We are a very good match!" Valencia said. "We asked for all the signs that if it were right, it would line up or fall apart and that things would start matching closer and closer."
Scroggins said her faith kept her going, "She has saved my life literally, she has given me life to get off the machine of dialysis and live a better life."
The two couldn’t believe fate, or maybe the beauty gods, brought them together. A forever connection and a lifesaving procedure. 
"I just can't wait to see what my life will be after the transplant,” Scroggins said. 
Both women are asking from the communities support. You can click on Rocio and Isela’s pages to follow the journey and extend support. They go into surgery on June 6 at UC Davis in Sacramento. 
There are many more just like her still waiting on their guardian angel so if you would like to test to save someone’s life, click here for information. 

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