Transplant Story Takes Positive Turn

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Transplant Story Takes Positive Turn

A year after Omaha doctors denied him a liver transplant, Conniffe isn't resting in a plot. He's plotting his future.

The Columbia, S.C., man was shopping for a new home and investment property in Florida this week, 11 months after getting a new liver and a new lease on life at another transplant center.

"I wouldn't say I'm 100 percent," Conniffe said during a short break from house hunting Wednesday. "But I'm alive and . . . I'm able to lead a pretty normal life."

One year ago today, the then severely ill 49-year-old and his wife enlisted the help of Omaha attorney and threatened to sue the Nebraska Medical Center.

Even though Conniffe's daughter was willing to donate part of her liver, specialists at the hospital's Lied Transplant Center decided not to put him on the transplant eligibility list.

Nebraska Medical Center doctors said at the time that Conniffe, who had received a partial liver transplant once before and battled cancer and hepatitis C, wasn't a good candidate.

They predicted that he would either not survive the surgery or die within six months afterward. The hospital helped Conniffe seek a second opinion, and the couple decided not to pursue a lawsuit.

After being turned down by several other transplant centers, Conniffe received a full liver from a deceased donor at the Mayo Clinic at St. Luke's Hospital in ville, Fla., in October. He was well enough to return to Columbia with his family before Christmas.

A check with Conniffe in March found him back in ville for a five-month follow-up visit, during which doctors admitted him to treat an infection and repair a collapsed artery near his new liver.

He said problems since then have included a second artery collapse and poor kidney function, which he attributes to stress on his kidneys during the month it took him to find a new transplant center. While his Mayo doctors have suggested that he might one day need a kidney transplant, he is not yet on dialysis -- the usual precursor. And while his numbers on routine kidney function tests aren't great, he said they appear to be stable.

Mayo Clinic spokesman Kaldor said Thursday that the specialist assigned to Conniffe's follow-up hadn't seen the patient for some time and wanted to see him again before commenting on his current condition. Conniffe is due for his one-year checkup next month.

Dr. Alan Langnas, chief of transplantation and director of the Nebraska Medical Center's liver transplant program, declined to discuss the Omaha hospital's decision. Through a spokeswoman, he said: "We're glad to hear that they say he's doing well."

Langnas has previously said that the transplant program's reputation is based on its willingness to tackle challenging cases, but that in some cases, the risks outweigh the benefits.

A national database of transplant center statistics suggests that the Omaha center takes on a higher-than-average ratio of the sickest and riskiest patients -- those ranked most urgent, according to national guidelines, and those seeking repeat transplants.

Still, Conniffe is glad that his wife didn't take no for an answer. He turned 50 in August, and the couple celebrated their 15th wedding anniversary in June. They are moving to south Florida to be closer to a daughter, Mayo Clinic doctors and a large transplant center in Miami.

His wife, Randi, said they aren't planning legal action against Omaha doctors.

"I'm not bitter, because he's OK," she said. "But I'm very sad for other people who are sick like was. Other people don't have me. If nobody is going to fight for you, you're going to go home and die."

Source: Omaha World - Herald

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