Connecticut Sisters Both Seeking Living kidney Donors After Polycystic kidney Disease

Connecticut Sisters Both Seeking Living kidney Donors After Polycystic kidney Disease

USA: Two Connecticut sisters born into a family affected by autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease are now both in urgent need of kidney transplants, one after already receiving a prior transplant seven years ago. The older sister’s earlier procedure came at 2:00 a.m. when a kidney from a deceased donor became available; clinicians described that organ as not ideal, underscoring the long-term advantage of living donation.

Polycystic kidney disease is a hereditary condition that progressively destroys renal function and can remain silent until testing reveals failing kidneys. The sisters are two of five siblings who inherited the mutation, and both now face declining function that will require transplantation to avoid dialysis. The National Institutes of Health notes kidneys from living donors generally last about twice as long as those from deceased donors, a statistic that has made living donation their primary hope.

Both women are undergoing compatibility and blood-type testing and are appealing for living donors who can safely live with one kidney. Medical teams stress that healthy people with two functioning kidneys often live well after donating one, and that rigorous evaluation protects donor safety. Transplantation logistics, matching and timing remain critical variables for the sisters’ care plans.

Family members say a compatible stranger with two healthy kidneys could change everything for their household—extending life, preserving independence and sparing future generations the worst of the disease. They continue to work with transplant centers and patient advocates while urging anyone able and eligible to consider living kidney donation.

Video originally published on 2026-05-15 20:48:42