Kidney Transplant From Father Gives Child
Transformed Life

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Three-year-old Danilo Kyzyk’s parents lovingly refer to him as “the Mayor,” because of his people-oriented personality and friendly greetings to everyone he meets. Like many youngsters his age, Danilo loves trains, books, and performing for family members. Unlike most children, however, Danilo has a medical history that could fill a book.

On May 8, 2001, Danilo had a living donor kidney transplant from his father, Andrew. This gift of love ended Danilo’s years of physical decline, allowing him to become an active, healthy child.

“After the surgery he was putting stickers on the doctors and nurses and making everyone laugh,” recalls Roxanne Kyzyk, his mother. “In the weeks after he was racing up the stairs at home, really tearing up the joint. It has been wonderful, much better than I thought it would be.”

Success After a Long Journey
The living donor kidney transplant was the culmination of years of concern and crisis for the Kyzyk family. In 1998, while pregnant with Danilo, Mrs. Kyzyk underwent a 19-week ultrasound that showed one of the baby’s kidneys to be dysplastic (covered with cysts). At the time, her London-based physician told her that the other kidney was normal. However, at 33 weeks of pregnancy, it was determined that both of Danilo’s kidneys were damaged and that he was experiencing renal failure.

The next day Danilo was delivered by cesarean section. In addition to damaged kidneys, he also suffered from respiratory distress syndrome, which made breathing difficult. Mr. and Mrs. Kyzyk were told that he had “an hour’s worth of life.”

“We were completely overwhelmed,” Mrs. Kyzyk recalls. “It was like being in the twilight zone. I just kept asking, ‘How could this happen?’”

Originally from South Orange, the Kyzyks were living in England and had no family abroad to offer emotional support. They kept a lonely vigil and waited for a miracle. After the first hour passed, staff members told the couple that the next 12 hours would be critical. That milestone passed, and the child struggled his way through the next weeks and months.

“Danilo was born with this amazing spirit,” says his mother. "He has a very strong character."

Although both kidneys were damaged by cysts, one was affected to a lesser extent and continued to clear toxins from the newborn’s body. The physician team was able to stabilize the kidney function using various medications and Danilo left the hospital in April 1999, almost three months after birth.

Although Danilo was feeding well and gaining weight, his physicians feared future weight loss and inserted a gastrointestinal tube in August. Within two months, he stopped feeding and the tube became necessary. His parents were concerned about his decline and investigated both dialysis and transplantation.

Coming to Saint Barnabas
At this time, the family was transferred back to the United States and learned about the Division of Pediatric Nephrology and Transplantation at Saint Barnabas Medical Center, part of the Saint Barnabas Health Care System Renal Transplant Centers. In February 2001, the family brought Danilo to meet M. Isabel Roberti, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Director of the Pediatric Nephrology and Transplantation Division at Saint Barnabas. Within a day of their visit, Dr. Roberti called the family to discuss Danilo’s blood work. The results showed him to be in grave condition, so serious in fact that the laboratory had called Dr. Roberti’s office and asked if the child was in a coma.

“We brought him back to Saint Barnabas immediately," recalls Mrs. Kyzyk. "Even though his blood work was so serious, Danilo was functioning. Dr. Roberti said he was showing us that he had a strong will to live.”

Danilo immediately received a dialysis tube to prepare him for later surgery. Test results showed that his father was a perfect match for a kidney transplant and the procedure was scheduled. The surgery was performed by Stuart Geffner, M.D., Director of Transplant Surgery for the Saint Barnabas Health Care System, and both patients recovered well.

“Danilo is a wonderful child and it is just great to see him talking, smiling and running with lots of energy after receiving his successful kidney transplant,” says Dr. Roberti. “He is enjoying his life in full with his family.”

The Kyzyks speak warmly of Dr. Roberti, Lewis Reisman, M.D., Director of the Pediatric Nephology and Transplantation Division, and the Pediatric Nephology staff and their care of Danilo.

“You need physicians like Dr. Roberti and Dr. Reisman who are confident and have the experience to make you feel comfortable,” relates Mrs. Kyzyk. “Just look at all the children who have benefited from these transplants.”

Since the Pediatric Nephrology program’s inception in 1996, 45 children ranging from 8 months to 18 years of age have undergone renal transplantation. The Saint Barnabas Health Care System Renal Transplant Center, which treats both children and adults, performs more transplants than any other facility in the state.