Transplant patients help each other prevent cancer

Karen Handelman Transplant News

An article written by Dr. Waterman was recently featured on the Sage Perspectives website. It discussed how Transplant Recipients’ International Organization (TRIO) approached Dr. Waterman to help design an online tool for kidney transplant patients who are at an increased risk of developing cancer. Dr. Waterman partnered with other medical professionals, health literacy experts, and members of the TRIO community. The resulting website (Post-Transplant Cancer Project) allows visitors to manage their cancer risk by learning about: …

Telling your story: the power of online storytelling for living kidney donors

Former Staff Transplant News

By Martha Gershun, Guest Blogger  Sharing stories helps people connect and learn from each other in powerful and unique ways. It also allows the storyteller to process their own experiences as they structure and organize their personal narrative to offer to others. The Living Digital Storytelling Project is a compelling, user-friendly platform for real-life living donation stories that provides first-person information about the challenges and benefits of living kidney donation in order to help others …

American Transplant Congress (ATC) conference reflection: jumping back into in-person science meetings!

Former Staff Our Lab in the News

We were jumping for joy to finally be able to attend the annual American Transplant Congress (ATC) conference in person in Boston from June 3-7, 2022 to network and learn from other experts in the field of organ and tissue transplantation.  The new Patient Engagement Research Lab in the Department of Surgery at Houston Methodist Hospital celebrated the many accomplishments of all the researchers and clinicians from J.C. Walter Transplant Center representing so many facets …

Martha Gershun with her book cover Kidney to Share

Kidney to share

Karen Handelman Donation Stories, New Publications, Transplant News

Introducing Martha Gershun, New Living Donation Guest Blogger In 2018 I donated a kidney at the Mayo Clinic to a woman I read about in the newspaper (1). Deb Porter Gil was in her mid-50s; the mother of two young adult daughters; a retired attorney, raised in Kansas City, where I lived; who had recently moved to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. Decades before, while still in law school in Kansas City, Deb had been diagnosed with …

Highlights from the “What do I need to know about the COVID-19 vaccines & transplant vaccine trial” panel

Former Staff COVID-19, Transplant News

By Erica Ho, Research and Education Associate With the first doses of COVID-19 vaccines being rolled out, kidney and transplant patients have had many important questions about how the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines may affect their health and treatment regimens. To help get these questions answered, the Terasaki Institute for Biomedical Innovation and its Deputy Director, Dr. Amy Waterman, hosted an informational panel called, “What do I need to know about the COVID-19 vaccines & …

2020 year in review: championing patient-centered work

Former Staff Staff Updates, Transplant News

By Brian Ha, Intern With 2020 winding down, let’s take a moment to reflect on all that we have accomplished this year for the transplant and living donation community. Together with our partners, we launched the COVID-19 Kidney / Transplant Listening and Resource Center, designed new education for living donors and transplant recipients in partnership with the community, presented our work on digital storytelling and innovative education tools at talks and conferences hosted by the …

The power of digital storytelling featuring recipients and donors from the Living Donation Storytelling Project

Former Staff Donation Stories

By Jessica Nunez, Intern On November 20, 2020, Dr. Waterman gave a talk titled “The Power of Digital Storytelling to Educate, Empower, and Engage Patients and Prospective Donors” as part of a virtual series hosted by the Terasaki Institute for Biomedical Innovation. You can view the full talk here. The talk highlighted the Transplant Research and Education Center (TREC)’s Living Donation Storytelling Project, which aims to share the real-life testimonies of living kidney donors and …

Meet a TREC fellow: an Interview with Dr. Ashley Feinsinger

Former Staff Staff Updates

By Erica Ho, Research and Education Associate At TREC, we have assembled a new group of researchers working in transplantation called the TREC Fellows. Over the next few weeks, we will introduce you to each one by summarizing an interview with them conducted by different staff members in the lab. Last time, we learned about Terri Menser and her experience with kidney transplantation research. This week we had the chance to talk to Ashley Feinsinger, …

QIP changes are coming in 2020: Is your dialysis center ready? The Kidney Transplant Toolkit can help

Former Staff New Publications, Transplant News

For Professionals in Nephrology, Dialysis, and Transplant: A discussion of CMS ESRD QIP changes that could impact your funding and the Toolkit that will help you be ready CMS requires dialysis centers to increase patients wait-listed for transplant Earlier this year, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced that, as part of its ESRD Quality Incentive Program (QIP) starting January 1, 2020, dialysis facilities will be required to report their Percentage of Prevalent …

Celebrating clarity, saving lives

Former Staff From the Founder, Transplant News

A few days ago, we celebrated a win for everyone affected by kidney disease as one of the uncertainties facing living kidney donors was erased. In response to Congresswoman Jaime Herrera Beutler’s (R-WA) amendment of the Family and Medical Leave Act, the U.S. Labor Department issued a legal opinion stating its agreement that kidney donation qualifies as a “serious health condition.” The August 28 opinion’s introductory words are as follows: “This letter responds to your …