“I’m running and raising money for Tufts MC because they helped my family and saved my brother's life,” said Melissa.
Her brother, Jason Hill, learned he needed a kidney transplant to survive in August 2014.
“I immediately knew I wanted to see if I could help,” said Melissa. “I am a mom of 4 and my youngest at the time was 2 years old and my oldest was 7. My life was very busy, but I knew I had to see if I was a match. It’s my brother.”
Melissa began testing with the Tufts Medical Center transplant team in September 2014 and quickly learned she was a match for donation.
“I was very nervous but my Tufts Medical Center team made me feel like a person, not a number,” she said. “They answered every question I had. The human body is amazing. If I had a third kidney, I would do it again for someone else.”
Melissa Burgess
While Jason was relieved, he was also nervous for Melissa. “Once we found out that my sister was a match and that she was going to donate her kidney, I was in a bit of shock,” he said. “I was actually more concerned with how her body was going to handle life after having a kidney removed. As you can see, she now runs marathons and is very healthy.”
The surgery was swiftly scheduled for November 25, 2014.
“We celebrated an early Thanksgiving the week before,” she said. “On that day, my parents had both of their children in surgery. Now it’s another celebration—an anniversary we celebrate.”
Melissa had a laparoscopic donor nephrectomy, a procedure where a donor kidney is removed through a small incision. The kidney was then donated directly to her brother. Melissa remembers seeing him once he came out of surgery and feeling an immediate sense of relief.
“I remember that I didn’t cry right then, but I felt the relief that we were both alive and well,” she said. “The recovery for me was not painful at all. It felt to me like I had done a bunch of ab exercises and I also was very tired for a few days. My brother immediately felt better and his new kidney was working. He couldn’t wait to eat.”
After having been on a special diet for many months, she remembers Jason wanted pizza.
Today, Jason continues to be monitored by his care team at Tufts Medical Center, but his kidney remains in good health. He is now 48 and has 2 children.
“We are closer now,” said Melissa. “This process makes you think about life and what it’s really about.”
