Little Rock, Arkansas – A Cabot family expressed their gratitude over the holidays, stating that their son will soon receive a kidney donation from his mother.
According to Kenneth Grantham, his non-curable kidney condition, IGA Nephropathy, was identified as his diagnosis in February of 2012.
“It was on my 20th birthday whenever I got the first scan,” Grantham said
Grantham claimed that he had been well for years and was receiving treatment. But this year, the condition of his kidneys became critical, necessitating a kidney transplant.
“I went from stage 3 to stage 5 now,” he said.
Twenty of Grantham’s acquaintances and relatives tested positive for being his donor, he said. In the end, his mother Karen Wright was chosen because she was a match for him.
“It’s been very emotional,” she said.
Wright stated that a number of medical complications arose during the transplant procedure. Wrights did, however, report a few weeks ago that she and Grantham had received consent for the surgery in December.
“It was words you waited to hear for a long time,” Grantham said.
Wright claimed she gave being his donor no second thought.
“It’s something a mom does. Do you know people say, ‘How could you do that,’ and I say, ‘How could you not do that?’” she said. “It’s your kid, it’s what you’re supposed to do.”
Wright claimed that Grantham decided to become a nurse in order to help others once they learned of her diagnosis.
“I just decided I was going to school and become a nurse so I could know what they were talking about,” she said.
She expressed gratitude that they could enjoy Thanksgiving and that he could spend time with his son and future wife.
“It’s made me slow down and appreciate things that I wouldn’t have happened,” Grantham said. “It’s made me and my mom closer and everyone in my family.”
In spite of everything, Grantham claimed he couldn’t grin if it weren’t for his whole family.