Transplant Talks

- with Drs. Pedro Catarino and Dominick Megna  @cedarssinai  What is it like to care for patients with end-stage heart and lung disease - and then watch them get a second chance at life? In this episode of Transplant Talks, we sit down with Dr. Pedro Catarino, Director of Aortic Surgery  at Cedars-Sinai, and Dr. Dominick Megna, Surgical Director of Lung Transplantation. We discuss what drew them t...

What does it mean to truly live? For Julia Renz, that question has never been abstract. A two-time heart transplant recipient, Julia received her first transplant at just four years old after being diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy, a rare condition affecting roughly 8 in 100,000 infants. Despite the weight of that diagnosis, she spent her childhood doing what kids do: dancing, playing basebal...

🎙️In this episode, we talk about the documentary Abundant and the idea of what it really means to live from a place of generosity instead of scarcity. 💚 I’m joined by Laura Diaz Moore, a living kidney donor who made a major career shift from law to working as a mountain host in Park City, and Donald Griswold, the director of the film. To make the documentary, they put out a call on social media a...

🎙️At 35, Stell de Kock was diagnosed with end-stage kidney disease. Her only symptom at the time was a sore foot. She has now been on dialysis three times a week for 14 years and has spent 13 years on the transplant waitlist. Stell is the Managing Director of Transplant Education for Living Legacies (TELL) in South Africa. In this conversation, she shares what it’s like to live long-term on dialys...

Andrew Menard is a retired fourth-grade teacher who inherited polycystic kidney disease from his father. After witnessing the physical and emotional toll of dialysis on his dad, Andrew made a deliberate choice: he would begin looking for a living kidney donor before needing dialysis. Along the way, Andrew received support from many directions. His fourth-grade students and their families became pa...

🎙️In this episode of Transplant Talks, living liver donor Maureen Carrig shares the deeply personal story behind her decision to donate. After hearing about the critical need for pediatric liver transplants at Children’s Hospital Colorado, Maureen felt moved to act—and made her decision within just a few days. She describes the nerves of telling people, the weight of choosing something so life-alt...

🎙️⭐Don't forget to 👍🏻and subscribe! 🚁When flight nurse Dave lifted off for what seemed like a routine helicopter transport, he had no idea it would end in catastrophe. Moments after takeoff, the helicopter crashed—killing the pilot, leaving Dave with burns over 90% of his body, and injuring his partner, who managed to scramble out. Dave was airlifted once again—this time as the patient—to a bu...

https://strengthofmyscars.com/ 🎙️Today’s guest, Dr. Baimas-George, describes her transplant surgery fellowship as the hardest challenge of her career — one that brought her face to face with the full spectrum of organ donation, including the extraordinary commitment of living donors who undergo surgery they don’t medically need. She calls it “controlled mutilation” — a deliberate act of harm to th...

👍Don't forget to like and subscribe! 💚 🎙️In this powerful episode of #TransplantTalks we hear from Kelsey, who was diagnosed with medullary cystic kidney disease at just 17 years old after routine lab work before college revealed she was already in kidney failure. Forced to delay college and begin hemodialysis, Kelsey's journey began with a selfless act from her father, Steve, who became her fir...

In this powerful and deeply personal episode, we sit down with Dr. Jeff Druck, an emergency medicine physician and Vice Chair for Faculty Advancement, Transformation, and Wellbeing at The University of Utah. Dr. Druck shares his experience with depression, including the months it took him to recognize that something was wrong, and the painful reality of having suicidal thoughts. He sheds light on...

🎙️Don't forget to like and subscribe!👍🎙️💚 The day after her 50th birthday - also the day after she was convinced she was going to die - Kerre received the gift of life: a liver transplant. Her diagnosis was elusive, with her doctors suspecting Wilson’s disease, a rare condition that usually presents in childhood. Despite the uncertainty and the gravity of her illness, Kerre’s mindset never waver...

In this episode, Dr. Sixto Giusti joins us for an important conversation about the critical yet controversial topic of transplantation in the context of migration, with a particular focus on undocumented immigrants in the United States. Sixto Giusti, MD, FASN is Associate Professor of Medicine in the Division of Renal Diseases and Hypertension and Director of the Hispanic Transplant Clinic. The nu...

🎙️leave a review: https://tinyurl.com/5bp9ytx 👍Don't forget to like and subscribe! In this episode of @TransplantTalks-Podcast Dr. Sixto Giusti of @CUAnschutz and @UniversityofColoradoHealth joins us for an important conversation about the critical yet controversial topic of transplantation in the context of migration, with a particular focus on undocumented immigrants in the United States. Sixto...

In this episode of Transplant Talks,  @CUAnschutz  liver expert, Dr. James Burton talks with us about all things liver related. Have you ever wondered how alcohol leads to liver damage? Or if binge drinking is as bad as daily drinking? What about liver cleanses - are they any good? Is acetaminophen safe when you already have liver disease? How about ibuprofen? And much more! #hepatology #liverheal...

In this episode of Transplant Talks, @CUAnschutz liver expert, Dr. James Burton talks with us about all things liver related. Have you ever wondered how alcohol leads to liver damage? Or if binge drinking is as bad as daily drinking? What about liver cleanses - are they any good? Is acetaminophen safe when you already have liver disease? How about ibuprofen? And much more! #hepatology #liverhealth...

Emma is 31 years old and a native of Florida. She had worked as a bar manager for most of her adult life. She describes, “I always was too enthusiastic of a drinker and drank more than my friends,” but things got worse during COVID. It was difficult to be home for months, and she found herself just doing shot after shot all day. After COVID, she quit drinking on and off but kept falling back into...

Emma is 31 years old and a native of Florida. She had worked as a bar manager for most of her adult life. She describes, “I always was too enthusiastic of a drinker and drank more than my friends,” but things got worse during COVID. It was difficult to be home for months, and she found herself just doing shot after shot all day. After COVID, she quit drinking on and off but kept falling back into...

Matison Deaton is a remarkable woman, with perseverance that most cannot even imagine. She was diagnosed with cystic fibrosis when she was 1 1/2 years old, so her life was filled with lots of doctors’ appointments and all kinds of things that kids just shouldn’t have to experience. She knew from a young age that she may one day need a lung transplant. Her doctors didn’t tell her she had kidney dis...

Nic grew up around airplanes his entire childhood - his parents started a charter company right after he was born. He has always wanted to learn to fly, but he was diagnosed with a rare heart condition that required open heart surgery at the age of 15. This meant he was unable to get a pilot medical certificate, so he pursued a sports pilot's license to fly for fun. He became a nurse practitioner...

Mariela started dancing when she was 12 years old in Ecuador. She trained in the conservatory and then moved to New York City to attend the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance. For her, dancing is like breathing, is part of her culture, and is a way of meditation.  In 2014, she ended up in the hospital with liver problems, but no one really knew what was going on. Mariela and her family tho...

Mike is a business owner, tattoo artist, and marathoner. He ran the Boston Marathon just 32 days after donating his kidney to a stranger. The same strength and determination that led Mike to pursue sobriety more than ten years ago led him to not even think twice when he learned his friend and running buddy needed a kidney. He donated a kidney anonymously at University of Colorado Hospital ‬  to re...

Casana Fink is an author, entrepreneur, Miss America Contestant, and organ donation advocate. Casana knows she wants to be a living donor at some point but isn't sure on the right timing. In this episode of Transplant Talks, co-hosts Anastasia Henry and Rachel Davis, MD, talk through this decision with Casana Fink. They discuss the differences between living kidney versus liver donation and explor...

Miss Tampa, Casana Fink, is an author, entrepreneur, Miss America contestant, and organ donation advocate. After her father received an organ transplant in 2013, she has devoted herself to championing this cause. Anastasia Henry, Executive Director of the American Transplant Foundation joins psychiatrist and living liver donor, Rachel Davis, MD, to talk with Casana about her own experiences, her a...

Lydia donated more than half of her liver to her childhood friend, Molly, just a few months ago.  They are both incredible people, and their story is one of perseverance, strength, and the strongest kind of friendship. Due to their religious beliefs, they did not want to receive blood products, and they had the utmost confidence in their surgeon, Dr. Abhi Humar, and his team at University of Pitts...

🎙️Audio only (Originally published April 9, 2024) Season 1, Episode 6 Dr. Marsh, a professor of psychology and an altruism researcher at Georgetown University, collaborates with our Director of Psychological Services, Dr. Tyler Branagan, alongside our host and psychiatrist, Dr. Rachel Davis. Together, they delve into the driving forces behind altruism and how it manifests in the actions of living...