COLUMBUS, Ohio — Stephanie Wolfe is 22-years-old. She likes to sing, and dance, but unlike most people her age, her kidneys are failing.
"I get winded easily. So, like, walking around, doing a bunch of stuff isn't always the first option," Wolfe said.
In 2018, she was diagnosed with stage 4 kidney disease.
"She has 15% usage in her one tiny little kidney that she has," said Mollie McCullough, Stephanie's mother.
Stephanie goes to dialysis three times a week to keep it under control. So far 655 rounds.
"It was like 13 hours a day, hooked up to the machine. Essentially, the way I explain it to people is that they take all of her blood out a little at a time, run it through this big, huge machine, and then put it back," McCullough said.
Her friend Eddi the Kidney helps her through it. His name was inspired by a character in IT.
"In the movie, he was always sick and always taking all kinds of medicines and everything, and I take all kinds of medicines," Wolfe said.
Eddi and Stephanie are nearing four years on Ohio's transplant waitlist. In the meantime, they have fun attending concerts, but it's the mother-daughter bond that is critical when days are hard.
"She's my partner in crime. She's like my best friend. So, the thought of her not being there, or something happening to her, I try not to dwell on it," McCullough said.
There are 90,032 people on the kidney transplant waiting list nationwide, and 2,203 on the list in Ohio.
Patients with end-stage kidney disease have three options for treatment: dialysis, kidney transplant from a deceased donor, or a kidney transplant from a living donor.
You can start the assessment process to be a living kidney donor by completing the online health history questionnaire. Once completed, your information will be reviewed by our team. If you're a potential candidate, one of our living donor team members will contact you directly.