Donor Diaries
Laurie Lee
Donor Diaries is a podcast that delves into the beauty and complexity of living organ donation. Tune in to hear extraordinary stories of people who choose to share their organs and give the gift of life. The world of kidney and organ donation is a powerful testament to kindness, love, and the human spirit.
With over 90,000 individuals on the kidney transplant waitlist and about 13 people dying each day while waiting, the urgency is real. One in three Americans is at risk for chronic kidney disease, and one in nine already suffers from it, often unknowingly.
Donor Diaries offers unfiltered narratives from living donors and candid insights from transplant experts, aiming to elevate the conversation around organ donation. Our goal is to bring this crucial issue to the forefront, so no patient has to wait in vain or suffer needlessly.
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Top 10 Donor Diaries Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Donor Diaries episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Donor Diaries for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Donor Diaries episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Tax Credits Can Save Lives | EP 23
Donor Diaries
12/12/23 • 30 min
Imagine a world where living kidney donors are compensated for their life-saving gift. A world where a severe shortage of kidneys doesn't result in the preventable deaths of over a million Americans. In this riveting dialogue, we're joined by four non-directed kidney donors - Ned Brooks, Elaine Perlman, Dr. Matt Harmody, and Cody Maynard who are the founding members of the Coalition to Modify NOTA. This team will help us uncover the implications of the National Organ Transplant Act (NOTA) of 1984. Together, they propose a life-altering solution that could end the kidney transplant wait list by offering tax credits to donors.
Living kidney donation is the gold standard of kidney care. Living kidneys last on average twice as long as deceased donor kidneys. Only living organ donors can solve the kidney shortage.
One percent of all Federal taxes that are collected is spent on patients in end stage renal disease. Every time someone gets a kidney transplant, an American can not only survive but begin to thrive again while taxpayers save money. In twenty years, the number of living kidney donors declined seven percent while the number of Americans on the kidney wait list doubled. The need for kidneys rises by seven percent per year. One million Americans will have kidney failure by the year 2030.
In today’s podcast episode we will discuss how modifying NOTA could end the transplant wait list.
Show Links
Coalition to Modify NOTA website
Bios for the 4 Founders of the Coalition
Most Americans Support Compensating Donors
The Ethics of Transplant by Janet Radcliffe Richards
The Ethics of Rewarding Living Donors symposium video 1, video 2, and video 3
A Cost-Benefit Analysis of Government Compensation of Kidney Donors
Would Government Compensation of Living Kidney Donors Exploit the Poor? An Empirical Analysis
The Terrible Toll of the Kidney Shortage
Removing Disincentives to Kidney Donation: A Quantitative Analysis
11/01/24 • 31 min
What would compel an American living in Germany to navigate a labyrinth of legal and cultural barriers to donate a kidney to a stranger? Join us as we uncover the incredible story of Will Johnson, whose altruistic journey sheds light on the stark contrasts between organ donation practices in the US and Germany. In this episode, recorded in a charming house near Munich, we reveal Germany's current regulations surrounding kidney exchange and the low rates of living donations that Will encountered in his quest to give the gift of life.
Embark on a transatlantic journey with us as we explore the emotional and logistical hurdles Will faced, from initial inspiration to the surprising medical discoveries along the way. Hear about the practical steps of coordinating evaluations across borders, and the varied reactions from peers and workplaces in Germany. Through Will's story, we gain a deeper understanding of the personal sacrifices and triumphs that come with kidney donation, highlighting the incredible impact of what happens when we choose to love a stranger.
Will shares: “I’ve been the recipient of much kindness and generosity throughout my life and have been blessed with good health. It felt like the right time to give back. When I learned about altruistic kidney donation, I knew without a doubt this was the perfect opportunity to do something meaningful.”
Living Kidney Donation in Germany
Global Observatory on Donation
From Germany to America: A Living Kidney Donor Story | National Kidney Foundation
Facts and myths about altruistic organ donation | Nephrology Dialysis Transplantation | Oxford Academic
Market Design Blog | Al Roth
Market Design Blog (second article) | Al Roth
Berlin Kidney Exchange Article
Living Organ Donation Donor Rate Statistics
Connect with Laurie Lee
GiftWorks
Living Donors: Shedding Pounds to Save Lives | EP 26
Donor Diaries
05/07/24 • 30 min
Imagine stepping into a world where giving the gift of life is made more accessible to all. That's the transformative journey we embark on with Ruby Rorty and Rachel Watson in the latest episode of Donor Diaries, as they share the details of a program called Project Donor. Ruby, from Stephen Levitt’s Center for RISC, shares the program's genesis and its profound impact on the healthcare sector's donor eligibility dilemma. With a focus on mutable health issues, this initiative paves the way for potential donors like Rachel, who recounts her heartening story of becoming a non-directed kidney donor and how Project Donor's comprehensive resources made her life-saving contribution possible.
Transitioning from eligibility to empowerment, our conversation reveals the personal touches that set Project Donor apart. Rachel's recount of the caring gestures she received—cards to edible arrangements—post-donation, underscores the program's commitment to holistic donor care. Echoing the significance of this support are the voices of case managers, the unsung heroes from the University of Chicago's Crown School of Social Work, who ensure a seamless experience for participants. As we celebrate both the program's success and the candid, inspiring advice shared by our guests, we're reminded of the deep connections forged through shared stories of hope, health, and humanity.
Relevant Links and Resources
Radical Innovation for Social Change (RISC)
Project Donor
Project Donor Report on American Living Kidney Donation
Challenges and Opportunities Report Summary
Crown School of Social Work
Update on Victoria, first Project Donor Success Story
Twitter Community Notes
People I Mostly Admire Podcast
Anti-obesity pharmacotherapy to facilitate living kidney donation
Obesity Statistics
Multiple Reasons for Living Donor Denial: A Single Center Experience
Outcomes of Living Kidney Donor Candidate Evaluations in the Living Donor Collective Pilot Registry
02/02/22 • 30 min
It’s illegal to buy or sell a kidney in all countries, except Iran. But imagine if there was a waitlist of people waiting to donate a kidney, versus a waitlist of people waiting to receive a lifesaving transplant. Could this be possible if the government financially compensated kidney donors? What if we not only removed the disincentives to donate, but added an incentive? What is the financial worth of a kidney, and what would donors need to be paid to ensure they are not exploited? Why is it OK to sell sperm, eggs, blood products and skin, but not kidneys?
Frank McCormick is a monetary economist who has recently turned his attention to the severe shortage of organs for transplantation. He received his Ph.D. in Economics from the University of California at Berkeley. He was a Senior Economist in the Division of International Finance at the Federal Reserve Board in Washington before becoming Vice President and Director of U.S. Economic and Financial Research at the Bank of America in San Francisco. After retiring, he taught economics at the Haas School of Business at the University of California at Berkeley, and the Graduate School of Management at the University of California at Davis.
While teaching, he became interested in the shortage of transplant kidneys, and, together with his co-authors, he has recently written six papers on the subject:
- A Cost-Benefit Analysis of Government Compensation of Kidney Donors
- Would Government Compensation of Living Kidney Donors Exploit the Poor? An Empirical Analysis
- The Terrible Toll of the Kidney Shortage
- Removing Disincentives to Kidney Donation: A Quantitative Analysis
- Reducing the Shortage of Transplant Kidneys: A Lost Opportunity for the US Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
- The Government Can Save the Lives of more than 40,000 Kidney Failure Patients Each Year by Compensating Living Kidney Donors
Join us for this controversial episode that walks us through Frank’s research and decide for yourself whether kidney donors should be compensated for their kidney donation! Let us know what you think on our Facebook Page!
Additional Resources
Donor Diaries Facebook Page (New!)
Iranian Kidney Exchange- L.A. Times article
National Kidney Donation Organization (info on how to donate while alive!)
Organ Donation Registry (sign up to donate your organs at death)
Insider’s Guide to Living Kidney Donation | EP 8
Donor Diaries
01/05/22 • 28 min
A transplant isn’t an event that happens exclusively to the organ recipient. It also has a major impact on the family of a recipient or organ donor and often results in complex situations and relationship dynamics.
Carol Offen and Betsy Crais are co-authors of "The Insider's Guide to Living Kidney Donation: Everything You Need to Know If You Give (or Get) the Greatest Gift.” “Our book includes much-needed nontechnical guidance for living donors and kidney patients considering or dealing with a transplant, from medical information to the impact on family relationships. Patient or donor, it’s critical to consider all the issues and be well informed. Knowledge is power–never more so than in matters of health,” explains Carol, a writer/editor in North Carolina.
Betsy, a North Carolina University professor/researcher, is a grateful kidney and liver recipient: she had a kidney transplant in 2004, and a kidney AND liver transplant the summer of 2021. Carol donated a kidney to her son when he lost kidney function stemming from a strep throat. Learn how their stories intertwine and ultimately lead to a 7-year journey to publish their book together!
The Insider’s Guide to Living Kidney Donation
“The Insider’s Guide to Living Kidney Donation” is available in a variety of formats and places:
- Amazon (Paperback or Kindle)
- BookBaby (Paperback and e-book)
- Signed copies through Flyleaf Books.
- AND ALL MAJOR RETAILERS CAN ORDER IT!
You can contact Carol and Betsy at [email protected]. Check out Carol’s Blog, which is ranked #2 of the Top 30 Kidney Donor Blogs.
The Dan & Laurie Episode | EP 6
Donor Diaries
11/03/21 • 30 min
Episode 6 features Laurie Lee’s family transplant story. Meet Laurie’s dad, Dan Dickinson, who is not only a liver transplant recipient, but Laurie’s partner in a decade’s worth of transplant initiatives. This dynamic duo will interview each other to bring you a touching transplant story that started over 20 years ago when Dan passed out on a plane! Find out how a liver transplant for Dan ultimately lead to a kidney donation for Laurie!
Dan Dickinson is founder and serves as Chairman of Transplant Village, bringing his years of business acumen as well as his personal experience as a liver transplant recipient to the organization. By helping Northwestern’s Comprehensive Transplant Center (CTC) raise the money that it needs to continue its research and expand patient care, he has helped create a system of success. As Chairman, Dickinson leads the NMTAC in achieving its goals: raising funds to support the CTC’s initiatives and developing lasting relationships with the group’s donor base to establish a culture of philanthropy within the CTC community.
Tune in to hear Dan and Laurie’s story today. Learn about their organization, Transplant Village, and learn about Laurie’s current efforts to produce a PBS Documentary called CrowdSource for Life.
This episode is lovingly dedicated to Dan’s deceased liver donor, and Laurie’s kidney recipient. Both are strangers, and both play an important role in this family story about giving and receiving.
“Love between strangers takes only a few seconds and can last a whole life.” – Simon Van Booy
Show Links:
The Truth About Organ Donation | AMA 07 (opening clip)
Dan’s Liver Blog
Transplant Village
Transplant Village’s Kidney Champion Program
Organ Donor Registry (to sign up as a deceased donor)
CrowdSource for Life Teaser Trailer
CrowdSource for Life Sponsorship Opportunities
Kidney Manifesting | EP 3
Donor Diaries
08/05/21 • 26 min
In most cases, when someone steps forward as a living donor, nobody actually asks them to donate a kidney. Usually, the donor hears the story of someone needing a kidney and makes the decision to donate without being asked.
The Living Kidney Donors Network (LKDN) is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization established in 2007 by Harvey Mysel whose primary mission is to educate people in need of a kidney transplant about living kidney donation and help them communicate their need to family members and friends. LKDN also has a program that educates the public about the need for living kidney donors.
Harvey is a 2-time kidney transplant recipient. After proactively managing an inherited kidney condition, PKD (Polycystic Kidney Disease) for over 20 years he had his first kidney transplant in February 2007. He was fortunate that his wife Amy was a compatible donor.
Harvey contracted a virus, (BK Virus,) 2 years after his transplant and after years of battling this virus, in August 2012 he had his second kidney transplant. Harvey and his donor, Stephen Liegghio, who was introduced to Harvey by an advocate, were involved in a 3-way kidney paired exchange.
Most kidney donors donate to someone they know and patients need to first have the knowledge about living kidney transplants and learn how to develop their kidney campaign so they could be effective in communicating their need. The FREE online program Having Your Donor Find YOU! does just that.
In addition to the work he does at the LKDN, Harvey is a tri-athlete, competing in a triathlon 5 months after his first transplant. He is a 3-time Gold Medal winner and Silver medalist in the Transplant Games. Harvey is an accomplished bicycle rider, tennis player, platform tennis player, bowler, hiker and rock climber.
Episode Links
Donor Diaries
Living Kidney Donors Network
Northwestern Kidney Champion Program
National Kidney Donor Organization
Johns Hopkins COVID/kidney Recipient Study
08/02/23 • 38 min
There’s a wide range of reasons why kidney transplant is available to some, but not all. Imagine the lives that could be saved worldwide if we organized a globally inclusive kidney exchange. What could be possible if we could break down borders and share kidneys with other countries?
Meet Dr. Satish Nadig, Chief of Transplant, and the Director of the Comprehensive Transplant Center at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago. He’s an innovator and visionary, and in this episode, we get to pick his brain to learn about Northwestern and the small network of Transplant Centers pioneering an effort to increase transplants through international kidney exchange.
Kidney failure is a global problem and is among the leading causes of death worldwide. The kidney shortage is not a problem unique to the United States although it’s perpetuated here by the high occurrence of diabetes and high blood pressure.
The barriers to transplant in economically developed countries are different from those in developing countries, but regardless, kidney failure in both rich and poor countries is sadly a death sentence for many. Barriers to patients receiving a kidney transplant should be identified and removed.
All kidney patients benefit from having access to a large pool of kidney donors. The bigger the pool, the higher the likelihood of finding a good donor match. This is especially important for hard to match patients that have high levels of HLA antibodies. It’s just statistically more difficult for these patients to find a match.
But many people who need a kidney transplant live in a small country where the pool of donors is small or worse, they might live in a country that doesn’t even have a transplant center. Other kidney patients might live in a country with restrictions that only allow a direct blood relative to donate- having a friend or stranger donate to them isn’t an option like it is in the United States. And in some countries, it’s possible to get a transplant, but paired exchanges are not allowed which really limits the patient’s options and access to transplant.
Join Laurie Lee and Dr. Nadig to learn about the future of International Kidney Exchange at Northwestern Medicine and hear some inspiring stories about the lives already being saved as we start to eliminate the artificial barriers between country lines.
Links:
Northwestern Medicine Organ Transplantation Program: Quality, Innovation, Education
Northwestern Comprehensive Transplant Center
Dr. Satish Nadig Profile
Experimental Strategies in Organ Transplantation with Satish NadigAlliance for Paired Kidney DonationAl Roth on Global Kidney Exchange and More
Global Kidney Exchange: opportunity or exploitation?
Diane Lee Reporting Live with 1 Kidney | EP 22
Donor Diaries
11/01/23 • 32 min
Diane Lee Reporting Live with 1 Less Kidney
Diane Lee is an Emmy nominated anchor and two-time Emmy Award winning reporter with more than 20 years of broadcast news experience.
Diane is currently the 7NEWS Consumer Anchor. Her exclusive reports focus on warning them about scams as well as highlighting money saving tips and investigating consumer issues. Diane’s “Here to Help” focus gives her a platform to assist viewers with any issues or questions they have, something that aligns with her desire to uplift others (a value that led her to donate a kidney to a stranger in 2023).
In this episode of Donor Diaries, we get a peek into Diane’s brain, just 3 weeks post-surgery to get a view of what donation looks and feels like right after it happens! Laurie and Diane discuss some of the surprises that can emerge post donation. Not just the physical kind, but the mental and emotional ones that sometimes pop up when we attach to specific outcomes for ourselves or our recipients.
More About Diane
In 2023 Diane won an SCBA Star Award for Investigative Reporting after her story “Before You Sell” helped an Upstate couple save their home. In 2018, she was nominated for Best Anchor among broadcasters throughout the Southeast including the Atlanta market. Prior to that, Diane won a Southeast Regional Emmy Award for a story she did on protecting oneself from identity theft and an Emmy for her investigative story on a debt collection scam.
Before joining WSPA, Diane worked as a weekday morning anchor for FOX23 News in Albany, N.Y., an evening anchor at WYOU, the CBS affiliate in Scranton, Pa, and an Anchor/Reporter at WRNN, a cable news station covering the Hudson Valley counties north of New York City.
In addition to her work in TV news, Diane loves to sing. She performs frequently with the Spartanburg Jazz Ensemble and Spartanburg Community Band. Diane produced a Christmas CD for the Children’s Miracle Network, and the project raised $20,000 for the non-profit in 6 weeks.
Diane graduated from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism. She lives in Greenville with her husband, elementary age daughter and middle school age son. She is also an avid jogger and hiker.
Links
Diane Lee 7News Consumer Anchor
Alliance for Paired Kidney Donation
Story that Inspired Diane to Donate
11/26/24 • 35 min
In this episode, Anthony Cernera, a three-time living organ donor, opens up about his transformative journey of giving and personal healing. His story began with a simple Facebook post that sparked a deep desire to help others, leading him to donate a portion of his liver, kidney, and stem cells. These selfless acts not only changed the lives of his recipients but also had a profound impact on Anthony's own mental health, helping him navigate struggles with depression and addiction.
Anthony shares his powerful connections with his recipients, including Lance, his kidney recipient, and a leukemia patient in California, and how these bonds have supported his commitment to sobriety. He emphasizes the role of support systems and the importance of being transparent during the donor evaluation process. This episode highlights how service and connection can be healing, providing a sense of purpose and belonging, which Anthony has found through both organ donation and his involvement in recovery work.
Listen in for an uplifting reminder of how kindness and selflessness can create positive change, not only in the lives of recipients but also for the donors themselves. This episode is a great source of hope and inspiration for kidney donors who may have to jump through some extra hoops due to their mental health history.
Connect with Laurie Lee
GiftWorks
Three Time Living Donor Hopes to Inspire Others to Donate
Anthony Cernera in Men’s Health
Fairfield Man an Organ Donor Three Times Over
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FAQ
How many episodes does Donor Diaries have?
Donor Diaries currently has 33 episodes available.
What topics does Donor Diaries cover?
The podcast is about Health & Fitness, Kindness, Society & Culture, Love, Medicine, Documentary, Podcast, Podcasts and Abundance.
What is the most popular episode on Donor Diaries?
The episode title 'Discovering the Unexpected Rewards of Donating a Kidney to a Stranger | EP 25' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Donor Diaries?
The average episode length on Donor Diaries is 31 minutes.
How often are episodes of Donor Diaries released?
Episodes of Donor Diaries are typically released every 31 days.
When was the first episode of Donor Diaries?
The first episode of Donor Diaries was released on May 31, 2021.
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