Woman Will Die Without Four Organ Transplants

Imagine being young and relatively healthy and then being told that you need to have four organ transplants or you will lose your life. This became a reality for Molly Pearce, a 24-year-old from Santa Monica, California. Now, Molly knew that she had a rare disease that could lead to this and she has battled health issues her entire life, but the fact that she needs four organs came as a major blow to the young woman in the prime of her life.

Molly has what is known as Hirschsprung’s disease. This is a congenital disorder meaning she was born with it. Her large intestine does not have nerve cells so obstructions occur because the muscle movement is not regulated. While her life has been highly sheltered due to being sick a lot, she has a long-time boyfriend and lives life to the fullest. With the exception of this disorder, she is quite healthy according to her doctors.

This story has gained so much attention because Molly doesn’t just need a kidney or pancreas, but a kidney, liver, pancreas and a small intestine. She had a small intestine and a kidney transplant in the past, but then a blood transfusion in 2011 resulted in a negative reaction. As a consequence, both transplants as well as her liver and pancreas had to be removed. She was put on dialysis.

“I was so depressed that I was telling my mother and everyone that I didn’t want to live anymore,” Pearce said. “I just wanted to give up because of how many things had gone wrong. After a few months, I realized I could either die or try to get better — and I at least wanted to try.”

After wanting to give up, the young woman decided that she just has too much to live for. She cannot eat solid food and is stuck in an isolated room, but Molly is putting up a fight.

Doctor’s say that without all four transplants, Molly will not survive. While the procedure of transplanting four organs is extremely complex and the recovery is going to be tough, once she is out of the woods, her quality of life should be reasonably good. Her positive attitude and fighting spirit no doubt would play a major role in a good outcome. They are likely what have gotten her this far.

Molly and her family were fighting this battle alone looking for an O negative donor for all four organs, but others have since joined the fight to save Molly. An organization known as the Flood Sisters Kidney Foundation of America are using their resources to help Molly get what she needs to get back to living her life. This organization is responsible for saving six lives since they started working so they are incredibly dedicated.

It can take as many as 10 years to get an organ transplant even when someone is really sick. Molly has a lot of people standing behind her and fighting along with her. This is not going to be an easy task, but each and every one of them, along with Molly, will keep fighting until those four organs are available and being transplanted into her body.

This just goes to show that even when things seem impossible that people will band together to make miracles happen. It is nice to see that big hearts are still scattered across this nation.