A Port Coquitlam woman in need of a new kidney may only have a few months to live if she is unable to find a suitable donor.
Adrienne Pace, who has been on the donor list since 2011, is appealing to the public to help find a match, encouraging anyone who is willing to get tested.
"I am hoping that someone steps up," she told The Tri-City News on Wednesday. "I am hoping for a miracle. We need some positivity right now."
If the 43-year-old is able to find a match, it will be the second time she has received a new kidney.
In 1994, at the age of 23, she was diagnosed with renal failure and waited years for a transplant, which eventually took place in 2001. But after an abdominal bleed in 2011, she was put back on the transplant wait-list and must now undergo dialysis six times a week.
Adding to the urgency of the situation, the veins in Pace's arms are no longer accessible for dialysis and she receives the treatment through a tube in her neck.
"My case is urgent," she said. "Without an access for dialysis - if this access gives out - I could die without a kidney."
On Wednesday, Pace received some good news. Since she first started her public appeal last week, 22 new people have said they will register to be an organ donor. Pace is next on the wait list and now the process begins to identify a suitable match. She said she was elated to know that there are people out there that want to help.
"People are wonderful," she said.
"It's nice to know there is some humanity out there," said Pace's partner, J.P. Vachon.
While the couple are hoping to get the word out to find a kidney, they also want to raise awareness about the importance of organ donation. Vachon said that many people incorrectly believe that they are organ donors but only a person registered with a decal on their CareCard is in the system.
According to BC Transplant, 300 British Columbians are currently in need of an organ transplant and people can wait up to 43 months for a new kidney - and for other organs, the wait times are even longer.
DONOR INFO
You can verify your organ donor registration information at www.transplant.bc.ca or by calling 1-800-663-6189.
