Iva Harris

Kidney Donation Date: January 31, 2002
Recipient: Iva's brother, Peerless
Home: Iva lives in Stockton, California and Peerless lives in Arkansas

Iva Harris noticed the toll her brother’s kidney disease had taken on him at a family reunion in Arkansas. “My brother, Peerless, had received one kidney transplant many years before, but the function had diminished and he was tired and weak,” explains Iva, a high school counselor from Stockton. After seeing his condition and thinking about it, Iva felt compelled to donate one of her kidneys.

“I told my husband and sons of my decision first and they felt it was a noble thing to do,” says Iva. When she made the call to her brother, Peerless began crying, he was so overcome by the offer. To proceed, Iva contacted Angela Bogetti-Dumlao, R.N., California Pacific’s transplant coordinator in Modesto. Rather than having the surgery in Arkansas, where her brother lived, Iva and Peerless agreed to have it in San Francisco at California Pacific because Iva’s family could help take care of them during the recovery.

“After I made the decision to donate, I wanted an instant answer about the compatibility of my kidney,” explains Iva. After blood tests and a review of her medical history, the doctors determined Iva was a match, and she and Peerless scheduled the transplant over the Christmas holidays. “Some friends and relatives were concerned about my donating, but I knew it was something I had to do,” says Iva. She approached the surgery with courage and felt neither fearful nor timid. In fact, when it came time for her surgery, Iva walked into the operating room, put herself on the table and told the team, “Let’s get this show on the road!”

The surgery to remove Iva’s kidney was performed via laparoscopic nephrectomy, resulting in three scars the size of a dime and a small incision from which the doctors removed her kidney. “To look at my body, you would never realize I had donated a kidney,” says Iva. She stayed in the hospital about four days and visited with Peerless the day after surgery. Both felt the kidney team took care of them nicely during their recovery. Upon their return home, Iva and Peerless’ recovery continued smoothly and today, both are doing great. “Because this kidney came from a living donor, Peerless is doing better than with his first transplant,” explains Iva. She adds, “We both have a will to live and a will to tell others about transplant and living donation.”