Kidney Transplant: Diana's Story

Diana (pictured) received a kidney transplant at American Family Children's Hospital in Madison, Wisconsin.

When you're a third-grader, you don't think about things like kidney transplants.

Eight-year-old Diana's days were filled with school, fun with friends and the countdown to summer vacation. But one day during gym class, Diana experienced a weird pain in her chest, and had a hard time catching her breath. It got so bad that Diana's mom, Eugenia, took her to the emergency room.

Diana was a healthy young girl, which made it hard to understand how tests could show that her kidneys were not functioning well. Her physician in Illinois recommended the nephrology program at the UW Health American Family Children's Hospital, so Diana and her parents made the trip to Madison.

Over the next year, Diana's physicians managed her kidney failure with medication, but it became apparent that she needed a transplant. Diana and her parents met with the pediatric nurse coordinator at the UW Health Transplant Program to begin preparations for her transplant.

They discussed the wait list process, and ultimately both of Diana's parents decided to be tested to see if either of them could donate a kidney.

After the initial assessment, Eugenia was found to be the better match, and the final evaluation process confirmed this. In July, Eugenia gave one of her kidneys to her daughter.

Watching Diana recover from such a life-changing surgery was rewarding to the nurses, physicians and staff who worked with Diana. She was back to her activities very quickly and is now enjoying the fifth grade. To Diana, nothing could be better than her renewed health and increased energy level, except maybe enjoying the benefits of both with a nice jog in the sunshine.