When Ma’lena Wirth found out she needed a kidney, she was overwhelmed by the response.

Several of her friends volunteered to get tested for a match, as did a former student and five high school boys. 

Wirth is the English Language Learner family liaison coordinator, and interpreter/translator, for the Baker School District.

The first consideration for a donor is a compatible blood type. Wirth is O positive. Also, donors must be between 18 and 70 years old.

She said her former and current students decided to donate blood to find out their type. She’ll never forget the words of Gabriel Rosales.

“He said I can live without a kidney, but I can’t live without you,” she said.

The wave of support makes her voice break with emotion.

“It blew me away. It’s very humbling,” she said. “What do you say? They want to save your life. It’s the most unselfish thing ever.”

Her first potential donor to be tested, Toni Nickell, was a match.

Surprise diagnosis

In August 2022, Wirth contracted COVID-19 and ended up the emergency room.

After tests, she received unexpected news.

“The ER doctor said ‘Do you know you have kidney failure?'” she said.

Her GFR number, which indicates how well kidneys filter blood, was 30.

An ideal GFR is 90 to 100.

On Aug. 8, 2023, her nephrologist referred her for a kidney transplant, and that December she had testing at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona.

By 2024, Wirth’s GFR was below 10.

“I’m getting worse and worse,” she said.

In February, she started dialysis, a treatment that removes excess water, waste and toxins from the blood. She was able to set it up at home, and complete dialysis every night.

“Everything has to be sterile,” she said.

She chose this option instead of driving to La Grande three times a week for the treatment.

Her new condition also affected meals — she couldn’t eat tomatoes, avocados, spinach, citrus, bananas or beans. Sodium was also a no.

“I can’t have too much of anything,” she said.

The donation

In November, Wirth headed to Arizona to prepare for her transplant.

Kidneys are one example of a living donation. Other living donations are a portion of the liver, lung, pancreas or intestine, as well as donating blood or bone marrow.

According to the National Kidney Foundation, kidney transplants from living donors may have several advantages compared to transplants from deceased donors:

• Some living donor transplants are done between family members who are genetically similar. A better genetic match lessens the risk of rejection.
• A kidney from a living donor usually functions immediately. Some deceased donor kidneys do not function immediately, and as a result the patient may require dialysis until the kidney starts to function.
• Potential donors can be tested ahead of time to find the donor who is most compatible with the recipient. The transplant can take place at a time convenient for both the donor and recipient.

Wirth said if no one had been a match, she would have been place on the transplant list.