Hursey Family Makes Commitment to Support Life-Saving Care in the Advanced Transplant Program at UMass Memorial Medical Center
In the United States, nearly 90,000 people are currently on the waiting list for a kidney transplant, and the wait time average is three to five years. While finding a living donor is an often long and arduous process, this ended up being the easy part of the health journey for Nancy Hursey, a former nurse who was told she needed a kidney transplant amid living with diabetes and after two years on dialysis.
Thanks to the generosity of a young woman living in her community, Nancy quickly found a donor who was not just eager to help save her life but who was also a perfect match. Nancy and Frank, her husband of 53 years, were thrilled. However, this joy quickly turned to frustration when actually having the transplant procedure became a challenge.
The Hurseys were turned away by surgeons at two local Connecticut hospitals who said Nancy was too high risk for the procedure. Surgeons at a third hospital in Massachusetts agreed to take on Nancy as a patient but then made mistakes during the operation that prevented them from completing the transplant.
While all this was happening, Nancy was seeing a vascular surgeon for a separate health issue who referred the Hurseys to UMass Memorial Medical Center (UMMMC). The surgeon had trained at UMMMC and knew its Advanced Transplant Program—which was recognized as a 5-tier kidney transplant center by the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients and awarded the distinguished Medal of Honor by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services—was a leader in the field of kidney transplants.
Under the care of Pang-Yen Fan, MD—Medical Director of the Kidney Transplant Program—Nancy had a successful kidney transplant surgery at UMMMC. “We take a comprehensive approach to kidney transplant care,” says Dr. Fan. “It is so rewarding to see how good a patient looks and feels after surgery, and to see the response from their family and friends who get their loved one back. It’s the best feeling in the world.”
In appreciation for the life-changing and life-saving care Nancy received, the Hurseys made a generous $150,000 commitment to support the Advanced Transplant Program at UMMMC in hopes that others will have access to the same high caliber of care.
“For Nancy and me, it was love at first sight,” says Frank. “So, to the surgeons at UMMMC who helped save Nancy’s life, I will be forever grateful.”
“My first and foremost joy with having had the surgery is that I can now enjoy quality time with my grandson,” says Nancy.
Nancy Hursey's Transplant Story