Eric has been a fighter since the day he was born! Shortly after being discharged from the hospital at birth, Eric began displaying symptoms of a problem. Eric vomited excessively and was losing weight. His doctor initially thought Eric had a sensitivity to his formula. After several trials and errors it was obvious there was a more serious problem. Eric was diagnosed as only having 8% kidney function in one kidney and 0% in the other. We were initially told that he was too small to have dialysis and that he would likely die. Somehow Eric held on. Then the doctors told us he would never grow to 25 pounds due to his lack of kidney function. However, somehow he proved them wrong.
Without going into great detail, the doctors on several additional occasions told us that Eric would not be able to continue living. Miraculously, Eric continued to fight and exceeded the expectations of his doctors. That journey was long and hard and not something I, as his mother, would like to relive.
As Eric approached the age where he would start schooling, it became obvious that he had some special learning needs. Eric graduated from North Penn High School in 1999 but in those 12 years it was a struggle for him to learn everything he needed to know to function as a normal person in society.
At age 11, Eric only weighed 55 pounds. In the midst of a stomach virus which caused vomiting, Eric apparently dehydrated significantly. Eric had a seizure and was rushed to the hospital. After an evaluation, the doctors told us that we must replace Eric’s kidneys as soon as possible. Both my husband and I were tested, and it was determined that I would be the donor. The surgery took place September 10, 1990 – both of Eric’s kidneys were removed and my kidney was transplanted. Immediately following the surgery an incredible change happened. Eric was full of energy and actually hungry. Eric began to gain weight and changed into a different person.
The following years were relatively uneventful with regard to Eric’s kidney failure. Our kidney cleansed his blood and allowed him to live a dialysis free existance. Of course, his medication regimen was staggering, but without that medication his body would attack our kidney and kill it in a matter of days. There was always that “hold your breath” feeling when labs were drawn to check his kidney function.
Unfortunately, Eric has had other medical problems. As a result of the kidney disease, Eric developed scoliosis. He began to walk with a strange gait with his right shoulder dropped. The remedy for this problem was the insertion of two steel rods next to his spine. This surgery was far more painful than the transplant. It was a difficult time for all of us. But, the surgery was a success and straightened Eric's spine. The steel rods must remain in his spine and cause some discomfort at times but, overall, it was definitely worthwhile.
Eric also developed rickets. His knees began to bow inward and when he walked, he had to pull one knee around the front of the other. His right knee was far worse than the left. Luckily, a very talented doctor was able to remedy the problem, with only minor pain. As Eric was still growing at the time, the doctor was able to make a small incision on the inside of his knee and he actually scrambled Eric’s growth plate. This stopped the inside of his knee from being able to continue to grow. However, the outside of his knee did continue to grow and as it grew the new growth pulled his leg into a straight position.
Eric was projected to have a significantly reduced adult height due to his kidney disease. The remedy for this was human growth hormone. This involved an injection, which Eric gave to himself, 3 times a week for a few years. What a trooper – most adults would have a problem with that. It did work and Eric is now 5’3”.
Eric began working for Forest Cleaning Service in Lansdale several years ago. Repeatedly his employer remarked on his self-motivated personality stating that he required no reminders and actually was ahead of them when it came to the tasks that needed to be completed. They stated they wished that they had 10 of him. Generally speaking, Eric is an extremely motivated and organized individual. When he feels well he is never idle and constantly on the move.
Eric also developed a love for classic cars. He and his father, Pat, purchased a 1966 Chevy Malibu that required an amount of work that many of us never thought would have been able to be completed to make the Malibu road-worthy. Eric’s Malibu has turned into a project that seems to never be completed but all the hard work and knowledge has paid off. Today, Eric and his father constantly attend car shows and cruise nights and Eric’s Malibu always draws a lot of attention and is his pride and joy.
In August of 2005 his kidney function began to decline. It is a slow process – and upsetting to everyone in the family. We were told that the primary immunosuppressant drug that was key in keeping Eric's kidney working all of those years was actually scarring the kidney and causing continued deterioration. In October of 2006, Eric was added to the UNOS transplant list and the wait began.
Eric is also a very shy person. In his 28 years, he has only had one girlfriend but they were dating for about four years. Unfortunately in late August, 2007, she decided to end the relationship and Eric was crushed! As is typical for Eric, he is doing his best to adjust to this loss and move forward.
In January, 2007 Eric had a dialysis catheter surgically placed in his abdomen. Arriving at that point was difficult, since it confirmed that his transplanted kidney was definitely failing. There are three different types of dialysis that were available to Eric. We finally chose CCPD (continuous cycler-assisted peritoneal dialysis). Eric is connected up to a dialysis machine in his bedroom every night for 10 hours via his surgically implanted catheter. Now it is working fairly well, but after the catheter implantation, the catheter failed to work routinely as it was getting caught in his bowels, stomach lining, etc. Eric had three more surgeries and finally, after tacking the catheter in place, it began to work consistently.
However, Eric has lost nearly 40 pounds from his original 170 pounds. The effects of this weight loss are extremely visible. He has been unable to work since he lacks stamina. He has aged facially at least 15 years in this past year. It is difficult for us to watch! We know the tremendous impact a working kidney can have on a person and we cannot wait until a matching one is found to free Eric from the machine dependent existance created by inadequate kidney function!!
