Why it's important to be an organ donor

(Originally published in the Powell River Peak)

Joey Whitford has a new pair of lungs and a new lease on life.

The Powell River native, whose lungs were scarred by cystic fibrosis (CF), is in his sixth month of post-operative rehabilitation in Toronto after a cutting-edge operation.

With his lungs damaged by the disease, most physical activities were an impossible strain, said Joey's mother, Renee Whitford. "Now he's been skating for the first time in 10 years, he's shooting hoops and soon he'll be resuming golf, which is one of his passions," she said.

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Joey said he is looking forward to returning to Powell River next month. He would have preferred to have his surgery in Vancouver, but he had a complication that could only be handled in Toronto.

"There is a shortage of donor organs in BC," he said. "Toronto has the donor base to allow Toronto General Hospital to become one of the top transplant hospitals in the world. The doctors in Vancouver had done five transplants; my doctors in Toronto had done more than 100. I'd like to see that change in BC, but we need more organ donors."

Renee said that when Joey was diagnosed, double lung transplants weren't an option. "There was nothing," she said. "Nothing but slowly fade and die. The doctors said he only had a 50 per cent chance of living until he was five. There weren't adults with CF in those days - kids got it, and kids died."

Renee added, "I think if people could understand the fear a parent goes through, wondering if there will be a donor in time to save my child, I think more people would donate."

Joey left for Toronto on December 18, 2006, and finally went in for surgery on August 19, 2007. Recovery was complicated by bowel obstruction, kidney shutdown and dialysis.

Most people don't realize that the law pertaining to donations has changed, Joey said. "People think that if they signed up to be organ donors with their driver's licence, they're still donors," he said. "But that's no longer valid. You have to start over and fill out a form, which you can get at doctors' offices and clinics, or sign up online at Transplant BC's website, or at my own website, CFsucks." On the website, he added, that's short for "CF sucks the breath out of you."

Once a person becomes an organ donor, said Joey, they can save many lives and have a positive impact on even more. "Between heart, lungs, liver, valves, corneas and so many other things, each donor can affect 36 lives. If you have an untimely death, it's a way that good can come out of tragedy."

One of the things that kept him going through the hard times was his love of golf. He has started the process to become a golf pro, but he didn't have the stamina for the physical side of the test. Soon, he said, that will be possible.

Disease strikes early
Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is the most common fatal genetic disease affecting young Canadians. A person afflicted with CF produces excess mucus that affects mainly the lungs and the digestive system.

In the digestive tract, CF makes it difficult to digest and absorb nutrients from food. In the lungs, CF causes severe breathing problems.

A build-up of thick mucus makes it difficult to clear bacteria and leads to infection and damage to lung tissues. People with CF must follow a daily routine of physical therapy to keep the lungs free of congestion, and routine intravenous antibiotics to fight infection. Most persons with CF eventually die of lung disease.

For more information, readers can visit the Canadian Cystic Fibrosis Foundation's website.