Celebrating Renewed Life

Sorry we missed printing your anniversary in December Daniel J. Luevanos, Liver '02

If we missed your anniversary, please let us know.

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Organ Allocation From Transplant Living

The United Network for Organ Sharing (UNOS) maintains a centralized computer network, which links all organ procurement organizations (OPO's) and transplant centers, so that donated organs can be placed as quickly as possible.

Matching Donor Organs with Transplant Candidates

When a organ donor is identified, a transplant coordinator from an organ procurement organization accesses the system. Each transplant candidate in the “pool” is matched by the system against the donor characteristics. The system then generates a ranked list of patients, called a “match run,” for each organ that is donated in ranked order according to organ allocation policies. Factors affecting ranking may include tissue match, blood type, length of time on the waiting list, and the distance between the potential recipient and the donor. For heart, liver and intestines, the potential recipient's degree of medical urgency is also considered.

The organ is offered to the transplant team of the first person on the list. Often, the top transplant candidate will not get the organ for one of several reasons. When a patient is selected, he or she must be available, and healthy enough to undergo major surgery. Also, a laboratory test to measure compatibility between the donor and potential recipient may be necessary. If the organ is refused for any reason, the transplant hospital of the next patient on the list is contacted. The process continues until a match is made. Once a patient is selected and contacted and all testing is complete, surgery is scheduled and the transplant takes place.

The Five Steps of the Matching Process

1. An organ is donated.

   When the organ becomes available, the OPO sends information to UNOS. The procurement team reports medical and genetic information, including organ size, and condition, blood type and tissue type.

2. UNOS generates a list of potential recipients.

   The UNOS computer lists potential transplant candidates who have medical and biologic profiles compatible with the donor. The computer ranks candidates by this biologic information, as well as clinical characteristics and time spent on the waiting list.

3. The transplant center is notified.

   Organ placement specialists at the OPO or UNOS contact the centers whose patients appear on the list.

4. The transplant team considers the organ.

   When the organ is offered, the team bases its acceptance or refusal upon established medical criteria, organ condition, candidate condition, staff and patient availability and organ transportation.

5. The Organ is accepted or declined.

   If the organ is not accepted, the OPO continues to offer it for patients at other centers until it is placed.

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Heart Transplant Pioneer Dr. Shumway Dies

By PAUL ELIAS, Associated Press Writer

Dr. Norman Shumway, the first surgeon to perform a heart transplant operation in the United States, has died of lung cancer, a spokeswoman at Stanford University said. He was 83.

Dr. Shumway completed the first successful U.S. adult heart transplant in 1968.

He may be best known for continuing with transplant research as many others quit during the 1970s, discouraged that most recipients died soon after their operations because of organ rejection or infections.

Dr. Shumway stuck with it and built a large transplant research team at Stanford that found ways to overcome transplant rejection problems. He developed tests that enabled the use of smaller doses of dangerous rejection drugs and was one of the first transplant surgeons to begin using the safer rejection drug cyclosporine. Ultimately, Dr. Shumway dramatically improved survival rates for transplant recipients. He was a remarkable man with incredible talent.

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Donate Life Month - April 2006

by UOTA Staff Writer

Please help us remind everyone during Donor Awareness Month that we all should be organ donors. The list of people in the U.S. waiting for a donated organ has passed the 90,000 mark. Please share this article with family, friends and neighbors.

Why You Should Be an Organ and/or Tissue Donor

Kaiser Permanente Member News

You only need to read one statistic to know the great need for organ donation: Every 85 minutes, an American dies because his or her body could wait no longer for a needed organ transplant.

"The really unfortunate part is that only 46 percent of eligible donors actually pledge to donate," says Christy Edwards, director of our National Transplant Network. "As a result, there is an extreme shortage, and every year thousands of people who need transplants die waiting for an organ." Gordon Loo, the network's communications manager, adds, "That number of deaths also includes some of our own members, doctors, and staff."

According to Edwards and Loo, one of the main reasons people don't pledge to donate is the myths surrounding donation. Some potential donors believe that if emergency doctors know you're a donor, they won't work as hard to save your life. "In truth, their first and only priority is to save your life," says Edwards. Others feel that for religious reasons, their bodies should remain intact after death. While such views must be respected, many religious leaders urge their congregations to pledge to save lives through donor registration and donation. Becoming an organ and/or tissue donor takes just a few minutes. Register online to become a donor at www.donateLIFEcalifornia.org.

Please consider giving a gift from your heart, the precious gift of life, please sign up to be an organ donor.

Please don't take your organs to heaven
heaven knows we need them here

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Donate Life Run/Walk

By UOTA Staff Writer

Thirteen year old John Corfee ran 5 kilometers last year to promote organ donor awareness. His sponsors contributed $350 for the California Donor Registry. John's sister Megan had a liver transplant 7 years ago when she was only 9 years old.

You can support donor awareness by running or walking in this year's Donate Life Run/Walk 5K/1K on Saturday, April 29, 2006 from 7:30 am to 2:00 pm at Cal State Fullerton. Volunteer Registration will begin at 6:30 am, walk-up participant registration starts at 7:30 am, donor ceremony at 8:30 am, and the Run/Walk will start at 9:00 am.

Register or sign-up to volunteer at www.donateLIFEoc.org or call Stephanie Schmitz (909) 952-1046. Fee is $25 for runners/walkers, $15 for students, $10 for children and $15 for organ donor family members and organ recipients.

Don't be selfish or 
self-serving
in anything you do.
  Instead of being self-promoting, be humble 
Consider others more 
important than yourself
 in all you do and say.
Encourage one another, 
and build each other up.

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Fifth Annual UOTA Picnic

By UOTA Staff Writer

Come and join us for our annual picnic in the park on Sunday, May 21st. at Cypress Trails Park in Chino, on the corner of Mountain Avenue and Schaefer Avenue, noon to 2:30 pm.

Grab the children and grandchildren, nieces and nephews, everyone goes. There will be hotdogs, fried chicken, salads, chips. sodas and cookies. We'll have games and prizes too. And of course great conversation and support from your fellow transplant patients, family and friends.

All food, beverages, plates, utensils, napkins and prizes will be provided by the United Organ Transplant Association.

RSVP to Linda Gricher (909) 923-7114.

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Donate Life Quakes Baseball Game

By UOTA Staff Writer

Come out, catch the game, have some peanuts and a hot dog and help us support organ and tissue donation. Tickets are $7 each and all proceeds go to United Organ Transplant Association.

We hope that you can join us and help in this worthwhile project at the Quakes baseball game on Sunday, April 9, 2006.

Please contact Don Goss (909) 923-7114 or Debbie Morgan (951) 276-4700 for tickets and information.

During April we celebrate Donate Life month to honor those who have given the “gift of life” by donating their organs and/or tissues. We also thank the donor families for allowing their loved ones organs and tissues to be donated.

Come help the United Organ Transplant Association spread organ and tissue donor awareness.

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California State PTA Convention

By UOTA Staff Writer

Members of the United Organ Transplant Association will attend the annual Parent Teachers Association convention in Anaheim, May 10th through 13th. Our volunteers will present educational materials, distribute organ donor information, answer questions and tell everyone how to register on-line to become an organ and/or tissue donor at www.donateLIFEcalifornia.org.

The 5,000 teachers attending the convention will take the message of organ donation back to their classrooms. For each teacher we educate, about organ and tissue donation, twenty or more students will learn of the truly great need for donated organs and tissues and what a wonderful and truly special gift it would be to Give the Gift of Life, and become an organ and/or tissue donor.

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New Food Pyramid From U.S. Department of Agriculture

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has introduced a new Food Pyramid, to create a simple diagram of what Americans should eat daily.

The new pyramid will educate the public on the value of healthful eating plans and maintaining physical activity (30, 60 or 90 minutes a day).

Grains, vegetables and fruits should be the stars of your list of good foods. The new pyramid identifies each food group with a band of color, the width of which indicates how much of the food group should be eaten daily; orange for grains, the widest band, which should be 25% of your daily food intake; green for vegetables, the second widest, another 25%; red for fruits, representing 15%; blue for dairy, 20%; purple for meat and beans, 10%; and yellow for fats and oils, 5%.

• Grains - Make half your grains whole. Eat at least 3 oz. of whole grain cereals, breads, crackers, rice, or pasta every day. 1 oz. is about 1 slice of bread, 1 cup of breakfast cereal, or 1/2 a cup of cooked rice, cereal or pasta. Servings per day 7.
• Vegetables - Vary your veggies. Eat more dark-green veggies like broccoli, spinach, and other dark leafy greens. Eat more orange vegetables like carrots and sweet potatoes. Eat more dry beans and peas. Servings per day 4.
• Fruits - Focus on fruits. Eat a variety of fruit. Choose fresh, frozen, canned, or dried fruit. Servings per day 3.
• Milk/Dairy - Go low-fat or fat-free when you choose milk, yogurt, and other dairy products. If you don't or can't consume milk, choose lactose-free products or other calcium sources such as fortified foods and beverages. Servings per day 4.
• Meat & Beans - Go lean with protein. Choose low-fat or lean meats and poultry. Bake, broil, or grill it. Vary your protein routine by choosing fish (especially those high in Omega 3 fatty acids like salmon or tuna), beans; like pinto kidney or lentils, peas, nuts and seeds. Servings per day 2.
• Fats, oils and sweets - Use sparingly. Limit intake of fats and oils high in saturated and/or trans fatty acids, and choose products low in such fats and oils. Get no more than 5% of your calories from saturated fat and no more than 300 milligrams of cholesterol daily.
• Physical activity - Engage in regular physical activity and reduce sedentary activities to promote psychological well-being and a healthy body weight. Thirty minutes of exercise is the minimum. Exercise for 60 minutes to maintain weight and prevent weight gain. If you've lost weight, exercise for 60 to 90 minutes daily to keep it off.

For moderately active people, recommended net calories should be 2,000 per day, or 20 servings.

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Patient Safety: What Can You Do?

Kaiser Permanente

Here are some ways you can work with your medical team to help keep you safe during doctor visits and in the hospital:

Ask Questions

It's OK to ask questions and to expect answers you understand. Write down any questions you have for your medical professionals.

Know your medical team

All health care professionals must wear identification badges. If someone without an identification badge tries to care for you, ask them who they are and then notify a properly identified health care professional.

Wash your hands

This helps prevent the spread of germs. Wash hands after you touch things, or use the bathroom. Touching your nose or mouth with unwashed hands spreads germs that can cause disease. Touching a wound with unwashed hands can infect the wound.

Share important health information with your medical team

Medical professionals may ask you the same questions. That's all part of making sure you receive safe care. Discuss all the medicines you take, including over-the-counter medicines like aspirin, ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil), vitamins, and herbal supplements.

Know your medications

If you don't understand why you're taking a medicine, ask your medical professional. Discuss possible side effects and what foods, drinks, over-the-counter drugs, or other medicines to avoid when taking your medication.

Check that you receive the medicines, tests, and procedures ordered for you

If you think you're being offered the wrong medicine or treatment, ask questions. When you're in the hospital, make sure your identification wristband is checked before you receive medication or treatment. Get all your tests results. Ask your physician or nurse when and how to get your test or procedure results – always ask for your results. Be sure you know what the results mean.

Compare expectations

Ask what to expect from the treatment or procedure you are going to receive. If appropriate, discuss side effects, allergies, pain, recovery time, and long-term restrictions.

Understand your surgery

Before your surgery, make sure that you, your physician, and your surgeon all understand and agree on what will be done. Discuss the plan and ask questions if you do not understand what you're being told. Make sure you know what to expect from your surgery.

Before you leave

Make sure you know what to do next and who to contact if you have questions. This includes learning about your medicines (including when and how to take them), when you can go back to your regular activities, and what follow-up tests or appointments you'll need.

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United Organ Transplant Association
Inland Empire Transplant Support Group

Some of the best therapy for folks dealing with bad medical news is to talk it out with peers who have survived similar experiences. Come and talk with transplant patients who have recovered from a scary medical diagnosis. Participants gain increased knowledge from guest speakers, printed materials, video presentations and group discussions. Our group meetings are held on the third Sunday each month. All pre and post transplant patients of any organ, their family and friends are invited to attend.

Meeting Location

Chino Valley Medical Center
5451 Walnut Avenue, Chino, California

Meeting Schedule

4:00 to 5:30 pm
Sunday, March 19^th & April 23^th 2006
Special Event: May 21^st - Our Annual Picnic at Cypress Trails Park in Chino
For directions, call (909) 923-7114 or visit the support group page.

Notice of Disclaimer - The United Organ Transplant Association, and the Inland Empire Transplant Support Group, their volunteer staff and sponsors do not engage in the practice of medicine and under no circumstances recommends a particular treatment for any illness, what-so-ever, and in all cases recommends that you consult with your physician and health care professionals before pursuing any course of treatment.

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You Can Make a Difference

Please help transplant patients, and their caregivers. Our organization provides educational, emotional and financial support, cash grants, support group meetings, donor awareness programs and this newsletter. Your gift truly makes a difference to those in need of these valuable services.

Contributions are Tax Deductible

United Organ Transplant Association
a 501(c)3 Public Benefit, Non-Profit, Charitable Corporation
Federal ID#33-0693906

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