Mom and Dad went to Cleveland the last week in September to meet with her transplant team. Honestly, they told her they were surprised to see her again because she was so sick the last time she was there two months ago. (They go every two months for check ups while she waits for a matching new pair of lungs to become available.) At that last appointment she was given very grim news, but just like every other prognosis report, she has outlived it and surprised the doctors in doing so. I wonder why they keep giving her timelines?
So, the doctors said that everything is being done to find a match, but unfortunately they have already performed 124 transplants since she has been #1 on the list (that means that each available pair goes through her grid first to see if it's a match and if not, it goes through the #2 person's grid, and so on).
That's a lot of lungs.
Mom's issues have to do with size and her antibodies in her blood. She has a very high amount of antibodies, so a qualifiying pair of lungs will have to come from someone who has a low amount so that they do not fight, and her body doesn't reject them. We knew going into this that there was a small percentage chance that she would have a match come available. But barring a miracle, it's our only chance, so we're taking it!
Anyway, the rest of the trip went quickly and uneventfully. She didn't get admitted to the hospital this time, so we were all thankful. On their way home, Mom and Dad got to stop in Greensboro to visit Leslie & Keith, and Karen & Dennis. These are Dad's cousins (Keith and Karen). Leslie is battling against cancer, so they wanted to go and encourage her in her time of need.
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