Will Taylor and 100 Mile House area resident Craig Conklin got the final word recently – the operation is a go.
On Nov. 19, Conklin, 55, donated one of his kidneys to Taylor, 27, a family friend who lives in Montana.
Conklin was discharged from a Seattle hospital on Nov. 22. He has to follow up with doctors there today (Nov. 27), but he says, so far, the operation is a success.
“There is hardly any pain at all. Everything went great. The kidney is functioning really well for Will.”
A couple of days before the operation, Conklin talked about the entire process being a long and “incredible” journey to get to that point.
It started in early 2012 when Conklin met Taylor at his son's wedding. Taylor, who teaches diesel mechanics at a college, always knew he would need a kidney transplant and was on a waiting list for one. Conklin and his wife, Pam, both volunteered one of theirs. Pam wasn't a match, but Conklin was. Normally, the whole process – blood, urine and psychological testing – only takes a few months, Conklin explains. In August 2012, however, a trace amount of blood was found in his urine, which required further testing and delayed the operation.
A kidney biopsy done in Seattle came back good and almost two years since the beginning of it all, donor and recipient are finally recovering from surgery stateside.
“When I told him I was a match, it was a little too hard for him to believe that this was actually going to happen for him.
“Will has always just kind of held back because there are so many things that can take a donor out of the process. His wife, when I called and told him it was actually going to happen, he said she was jumping up and down in the kitchen screaming.”
Asked about why he wanted to be a donor in the first place and to reflect on the selfless nature of that decision, Conklin answers matter-of-factly and talks about the need worldwide and the large percentage of people who will die waiting for a transplant.
“It is about Will needs a kidney, and he needs to get it from somebody.”
Conklin adds the impact on his own health going forward is not as big as people might think.
“The kidneys are one of the few systems in the body where there’s a spare. They say you can still live a normal life (with one).”
A couple days before the operation, Conklin says he wasn't worrying much about the procedure.
The surgeon explained everything, he adds.
“He knows what he’s doing. They don’t make a very big incision.”
Besides, he adds, Pam is a veterinarian – he let her worry about the medical aspects.
After following up with hospital staff this week, the couple plan to take some time off and visit Pam's brother in Honolulu. Conklin says he doesn't know if it's a “well deserved” break, but knows if he returns home now he'll be trying to do too much too soon.
He says it's important people know the facts about organ donation. Agreeing to be a donor is one thing, he adds, but signing the paperwork is another.
If you want to be one, “take the time to make it official, and let your loved ones and friends know.”