Were you a member of our Forum on http://TransplantBuddies.com ?

Yes

Where did you hear about Transplant Friends?

Transplant Buddies/facebook

Are You Male or Female?

Female

Share - which illness lead up to you needing a transplant?

My son, Vinnie, was born at 29 weeks weighing 1 pound, 15 ounces. At a month old he developed a severe case of necrotizing enterocolitis and after undergoing 3 bowel resections in a 1 1/2 weeks, was deemed "short gut" with no large intestine left and only 1/3 of his small remaining. He was TPN dependent and developed liver disease from that.

Which Organ(s) did you receive? If you are on the waiting list, please share.

We waited for a year until a kind family from Kentucky opted to share their 4 month old baby's intestines. We didn't know until the actual transplant surgery whether or not Vinnie needed the liver too... but turned out he didn't! 11 hour surgery at the Children's Hospital in Pittsburgh - small and large bowel transplant on 5/4/11. Vinnie was 17 months old at the time.

Drugs, vitamins, favorite foods

Transplant meds as of now are Prograf 1 mg every morning and alternating 0.5/1mg every evening, Prednisone 2.5 mg every other day! Also on Immodium 3 mg twice a day, multivitamin twice a day, iron twice a day, bactrim 30 mg 3 times/week, sodium bicarbonate 600 mg once a day, 1/4 baby aspirin once daily, fludrocortisone 0.01mg once daily, Neupogen 45 mcg once a week

How many years have you had your Transplant for?

7 months!

I am Interested in Transplant Friends because...

There's no support than the support you get from other's who have lived in your shoes! Race, gender, class, whatever - it doesn't matter - if you've lived through the transplant process you've gained a certain insight that other's will never know. I hope to give my son as normal a life as possible and tap into as many resources as possible for him and our family!

Which Transplant Center has or will perform your life saving surgery?

Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh, PA

Share how your transplant experience changed your life?

It was obviously life-saving for my son. Getting the bowel transplant early on in his life stopped his liver disease as well as gave him a chance to actually grow and gain weight... and reach milestones! The families we've met along the way have been instrumental in changing our lives as well, sharing in their joys and agonies, seeing some transplant friends not live through the journey :( we are just so OVERJOYED that our son received his gift and is doing so well.