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'I want to live a happier life': Kamloops woman looking for kidney donor

In need of a kidney

Rochelle Corpuz doesn't want to wait the five to eight years for a kidney.

That's the length of time it takes to get the organ from a deceased donor.

Instead, the Kamloops resident is relying on the kindness of strangers and hopes her story inspires a healthy, living donor to come forward.

Corpuz, who moved from the Philippines to the Tournament Capital in 2006, was diagnosed with Lupus 16 years ago. The autoimmune disease attacks one's own tissue and organs and can cause serious kidney damage, including kidney failure.

"Unfortunately, over the past couple of years, my condition has worsened and I have to face the reality of kidney failure in the very near future. We are talking months here," the 37-year-old tells Castanet, adding a transplant is the recommended treatment for patients with end-stage kidney disease.

Corpuz doesn't have much family in Kamloops who could donate, hence why she's putting a call out to the community.

"It has been recommended that a living donor transplant is the best-case scenario for me to continue living a healthy life. I have also learned that if I can bypass dialysis altogether, the prognosis is even better," she says. "I want to live a happier life for my niece, my family."

"I realize that what I am asking is an enormous sacrifice for anyone to make and that having major surgery is not going to be easy. On the upside, we all have two kidneys and yet we only need one to live a normal, healthy life. For this reason, it is possible for people to donate one kidney," she continues.

If you or someone you know is interested in helping Corpuz, contact the donor nurse coordinator at St. Paul's Hospital in Vancouver, at 604-806-9027, or email [email protected].



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