An Abbotsford woman who has had two double-lung transplants is now in need of a kidney.
Miranda Frigon was born with cystic fibrosis (CF), with which she was diagnosed when her mom was pregnant with her. (Her older brother also has the condition.)
CF causes sticky, thick mucus to build up in organs, causing severe damage to the lungs, digestive system and other organs.
Frigon, who grew up in Mission but now lives in Abbotsford, spent most of her childhood in and out of the hospital and received her first double-lung transplant in June 2015 at the age of 26 after being on the wait list for three years.
The transplant was a success for more than four years, but in December 2019, her body began to reject her new lungs. She went to the ER on Dec. 31, was immediately placed in a coma, and woke up 11 days later to be told she had been given her second lung transplant.
“Upon waking up, I realized I was hooked up to a dialysis machine. They told me, due to everything my body had gone through, it had shut down my kidneys, but they were quite certain they would recover and it would just take some time,” Frigon wrote in a Facebook post.
She spent 96 days fighting for her life and, after six months of dialysis, it became clear that her kidneys would not recover.
Frigon, the single mom of a 13-year-old boy, has now begun the search for a live donor, with the help of Abbotsford’s hotdog king, Skully White.
White owns and operates Lullys Food Experience hotdog stand out of the Canadian Tire parking lot and at Abbotsford Centre during events.
He donated one of his kidneys to customer Tim Hiscock in December 2020 and has since launched a campaign to find live kidney donors for others in need. He currently has 11 local people in dire need of a kidney.
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White promises “hotdogs for life” to anyone who donates a kidney, and the endeavour has even resulted in a documentary being filmed with that phrase as the title.
White has been posting Miranda’s story on his social media channels, and, although a few people have come forward, there have not yet been any confirmed matches.
Frigon says kidney disease has impacted every area of her life, including a loss of energy and physical and mental fatigue.
Her food choices are limited, as is her fluid intake.
“The dialysis treatments have been extremely hard on me. I have lost almost all my hair; they frequently give me severe migraines and nausea. It takes away valuable time from my son and the rest of my family because I’m either feeling sick or too tired to interact,” she writes.
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Frigon said a successful kidney transplant would eventually allow her to return to “a normal way of life.”
Her blood type is O, and either positive or negative will be a blood match.
Anyone interested in being a possible donor for Frigon – or for anyone else – is asked to email kidneydonornurse@vch.ca or call 604-875-5182 or 1-855-875-5182. They can also text White at 250-384-0403.
vhopes@abbynews.com
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