Organ Donation Kidney Donation Gives Rome Man a Second Chance

By Deborah Jeanne Sergeant

Rome resident Thomas Trace had been living with chronic kidney disease for 17 years before he was placed on an organ recipient list in March 2022. The same year, he had begun going on dialysis, which involves staying hooked up to machines that perform the job his diseased kidneys could not do: filter his blood.

Unlike many people who languish on waiting lists for years, Trace said he felt “quite surprised when I got the call in the middle of the night” mere months later with the news that a kidney was available.

“I was very happy since I understood I’d have to wait longer,” he said.

Trace was lucky.

Many people on waiting lists receive a similar call and learn at the last moment that the kidney was not a match. Trace’s dialysis provider told him that this even happens after patients are prepped for surgery.

Fortunately for Trace, the new kidney matched. Although he had a good experience while on dialysis, he wanted the greater freedom to travel and make other plans instead of hooking up to a machine for a couple hours a day, six days a week. The life expectancy for people on dialysis is five to 10 years, according to the National Kidney Foundation.

“It’s good to get the transplant before you’re on dialysis for a long time,” Trace said. “That was a good indicator for a positive outcome.”

On Oct. 23, 2022, he received the new kidney at Upstate University Hospital and “felt pretty good” afterward, he said.

“My main issue was that it was a little worrisome once I got it. I’m very concerned about my kidney. I want to treat it well for the sake of the transplant program. It’s a little burden to make sure I take my medications not only for myself but also because this came from someone who died.”

His gratitude for this gift of life