Meredith Burns’ world was turned upside down when her father suddenly turned yellow. The shocking change in his appearance led to a devastating diagnosis: end-stage liver disease.
Meredith quickly went to google to find a solution. Her quick online search led her to the Centre for Living Organ Donation within UHN’s Ajmera Transplant Centre – one of the top transplant centres in the world. Established in 2018, the Centre for Living Organ Donation works to improve access to liver or kidney transplants, caring for both the patients in need of a life-saving organ, and for the living organ donor.
The very next day, Meredith began gathering the necessary paperwork and underwent a series of blood tests to assess her eligibility to be an organ donor. To her amazement, she discovered she was a universal donor. This realization filled her with hope and determination. Knowing she had the potential to save her father’s life, she submitted her application with the subject line “keen donor” and the waiting process began.
Her father, who was 70 at the time, needed to undergo a battery of tests, leading to an anxious waiting period for the entire family. It was made worse when he experienced hepatic encephalopathy, a condition whereby a failing liver impacts brain function, which caused him to fall unconscious for about a week. Soon after he awoke, Meredith’s father was placed on the transplant wait list.
At that point, Meredith had extensive testing including psychological and social evaluations to determine her eligibility to donate. Just two weeks later, Meredith received a call offering them a surgery date. At that point Meredith offered her gift to her father and encouraged him to join her for surgery on August 15, 2022.
Her father’s transformation after surgery was astounding. He went from frequent naps unable to stand up himself to zipping around the ICU– all thanks to the team at UHN and his daughter’s liver donation.
What surprised Meredith the most was discovering the gift she had within her. Her experience taught her profound lessons about the brevity of life and her own resilience. “Now challenging situations feel a lot more manageable. I have a good sense of what matters, and what a real problem looks like,” said Meredith.
Now, she is focused on supporting the people and the process that saved her father’s life. She is helping to raise awareness of the impact of living organ donation. She also joined the UHN Impact Collective (UIC), a group of next-gen philanthropic leaders, to help fundraise for UHN.
Regarding her experience and decision to donate a portion of her liver to her father, she says “It’s empowering to offer up a gift like this and see what your body is capable of”.
To mark the second anniversary of their surgery, Meredith and her family participated in the Constantine Yorkville Run on Sunday, September 8 as part of Team Transplant, with all funds raised going back to UHN’s Centre for Living Organ Donation. Her father, now a testament to the life-saving power of organ donation, will walk the 5K, while Meredith will run it.
“I feel lucky to have been able to give my dad this gift, and I want to help others learn more about the groundbreaking advancements in organ transplantation.”
No one ever changed the world on their own but when the bright minds at UHN work together with donors we can redefine the world of health care together.