An Orillia woman in need of a partial liver transplant has seen her health deteriorate rapidly in recent weeks.
Last month, NewmarketToday published a story about Denene Bird, who lives with primary biliary cirrhosis, a disease that causes progressive destruction of bile ducts in the liver.
After a decade on a wait list for a transplant, Bird reached out to see if she could enlist the public’s help in finding a living donor to help end the years of suffering she has experienced from the condition.
She has been in the hospital since late November with end-stage liver failure and her daughter said without a partial transplant, she has about six months to live.
“Time is really of the essence,” said Bird’s daughter, Carlene MacLean.
“She has moved up the list because she is so critically ill, but they’ve told us that we would have better success finding a living donor because it’s a much quicker process,” she said. “It’s hard to think about what Christmas may look like without her.”
MacLean said her mother needs a donor between 16 and 60 years old with A +/- or O +/- blood types.
To combat her illness, she needs a partial transplant — a piece of someone’s liver. The organ can regenerate following a donation.
Two people reached following publication of the original story, and MacLean said one of those people is still going through the process to determine if they are an eligible donor.
She has garnered interest from social media posts of her own, but she hopes to cast a wide net in trying to help her mother, given the situation.
MacLean also looked into being a donor herself, only to find out she is ineligible.
“The whole time my mom has gone through this journey, she expressed to me that she did not want me to be a donor for her because she wanted me to be there to support her, but now it’s a matter of life and death,” she said.
“I signed a form and I sent it in this week against my mom’s wishes because I couldn’t just sit here and let her die. Unfortunately, I got the news that I’m not a suitable candidate, and that broke my heart.”
People interest in donating can read more here, and MacLean has requested any potential donors contact her at [email protected].
