MONTROSE, P.E.I. — The wife of a Montrose P.E.I. man in need of a donor liver, is reaching out to his family and friends to see if they would be willing to donate a piece of their liver.
Kevin Clements has been receiving treatment for Hepatopulmonary Syndrome for five years and, with complications worsening, he was put on the liver transplant list last spring.
Kevin and Josephine Clements made a quick trip to Halifax in October when a donor liver became available only to learn it was not viable.
In a Facebook post Thursday, Jan. 31, Josephine extended an invitation for family and friends of her husband to attend an information meeting, which was held on Sunday afternoon at Mill River Resort. At that time, she planned to explain her husband’s worsening condition and his dire need for a transplant to happen soon.
“This is really, basically, our last chance,” Josephine Clements said in a telephone interview Friday.
“There are so many people who want to help and to know, and a lot of caring people who love Kevin."
-Josephine Clements
She admits the transplant is a big risk for her husband, including the possibility he will not survive the transplant, but they see it as their only hope. If the transplant is successful, a two to four-month period of induced coma in Toronto would likely follow, she said.
Mrs. Clements said the risk of complications for live donors is said to be extremely low, pointing out the transplant team does a thorough investigation before choosing a donor.
Because the transplant would be performed at Toronto General Hospital, she said they are reaching out to family and friends in Ontario, initially. One of her brothers and one of Kevin’s brothers, who live in Ontario, are currently being tested. If either of them is deemed a viable match, she said a transplant could occur rather quickly.
But they’re wanting others to sign up to be tested, just in case.
Sunday’s meeting, she said, was an opportunity to “let people know how Kevin is doing, thank everybody for all the help they’ve given us, and their prayers, and tell them some about what’s going on now.”
“There are so many people who want to help and to know, and a lot of caring people who love Kevin,” she said.
She said they are turning to the live donor option because hope of receiving a viable liver from a deceased donor is running low.
RELATED
