Kidney transplant
Surgeon James Guarrera prepares a donated harvested kidney to transplant into patient Adam Abernathy as part of a five-way organ transplant swap in New York, August 1, 2012. Abernathy's partner David Ferguson donated a kidney for transplant to a stranger while at the same time someone donated a kidney to Abernathy as part of chain of kidney donations that allowed five people to receive a transplanted kidney of a two day period. The health dangers for kidney donors is believed to be low. The risk of death from the surgery is 1 in 1,700, according to the National Kidney Foundation, and life expectancy is said to be unchanged with one kidney. Picture taken August 1, 2012. Reuters

The supposed kidney transplant made possible by Craigslist did not happen. The surgery, scheduled on Dec 1, was canceled when doctors rejected Glenn Calderbank, the donor, due to his liver cirrhosis.

“When they woke me up, I thought the surgery was done,” Nina Saria, the kidney recipient, told Courier Post. “They said, 'I’m sorry to tell you, but you aren’t going to get a kidney today.”

Calderbank, who found Saria on Craigslist while looking for construction materials, was diagnosed with liver cirrhosis on the day of the surgery, therefore, not approved to undergo the procedure. Calderbank admitted that he has been sober for four years.

"They opened me first, then threw out the news cameras," Calderbank told NJ. "I am in a lot of pain."

"With organ donation from a living person, the donor’s health and wellbeing are paramount. For all living organ donations, donors undergo intensive testing and evaluation to ensure they are in very good health,” Penn Medicine said in a statement. “However if an abnormality is found during surgery, the surgical team will always proceed as necessary to safeguard the patient’s health."

Saria still calls Calderbank a hero for trying to save her life. After waiting for more than a year and finally finding the perfect donor only to get disappointed from the surgery’s cancellation, Saria is still hopeful. Unfortunately, she is now back on the long waiting list for kidney transplant.

National Kidney Foundation reports that 101,189 people are registered on the waiting list for kidney transplant in US. Patients have to wait for more than three years to finally have their first kidney transplant, but the length could still change depending on the compatibility and availability of organs. In 2014, only 17,105 kidney transplants were performed. Three thousand new patients are added annually to the list and unfortunately, 12 people die daily while waiting. In 2014 alone, 4,270 patients died and another 3,617 became too sick to receive the transplant.

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