Utah man gets kidney from second-longest donor chain in history

FOX 13 Utah 

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah â€" The second-largest kidney exchange in history happened recently, and the University of Utah was a part of it.

More than 88,000 people are waiting for a kidney transplant, and an average of 12 people die each day while waiting for a donor.

People in need of a kidney donation may find someone willing to donate, but that person may not be a compatible donor. Donor chains pair such couples up with other couples in the same situation to create compatible pairs.

Bolton Collins was forced to put his life on hold after he found out he needed a kidney. He worried he would never find a donor.

“There were a couple times I was in the emergency room in Las Vegas wondering if I was ever going to walk out,” he said. “It was that hard to breathe and to wonder if it was ever going to get better.”

Collins was entered into a national pair donor exchange program. Bruce Garrett, paired kidney exchange coordinator for the University of Utah, said these programs are very helpful.

“These paired donors and paired recipients participate in a large national pool with other paired donors and other paired recipients,” he said. “So, again, our program realized that and thought that this is a great opportunity to get our recipients transplanted.”
______________________________________________________ 
"You have the power to SAVE lives." 
To register as a donor in California: 
www.donateLIFEcalifornia.org | www.doneVIDAcalifornia.org 
Outside California: 
www.organdonor.gov | www.donatelife.net

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