Hamilton couple hoping new year will bring kidney for sick husband

Robert Slater didn't get the kidney he wished for on his birthday. And he won't be getting one in time for Christmas.

But maybe, with a little luck, he'll get one in the new year.

Robert, 30, has a rare, life-threatening genetic condition called Fabry disease. The disease causes a buildup of proteins in the body's cells and that can lead to kidney failure. His health has been rapidly deteriorating in recent years.

A kidney donation could be life-saving.

In early 2021, his wife, Stella Slater, launched a hopeful bid to find her husband a kidney, asking the public to get tested to see if they could be a donor. The dream was to find Robert a donor before his 30th birthday on March 7.

Sadly, that didn't happen. While at least 20 people applied, no one matched.

Robert's health is now on a steep decline. His kidneys are operating at 12 or 13 per cent capacity; a healthy person's kidneys operate at close to 100 per cent. This means he feels weak and sick nearly all the time. And on Dec. 21, he underwentgo surgery in preparation for dialysis.

The upside of going on dialysis is that it allows Robert to join a donor wait list - something he wasn't previously eligible to join since he wasn't sick enough. But the list is long. About 4,000 Canadians were on a wait list for a kidney in 2019, according to statistics from the Kidney Foundation. Wait times can range from a few months to years.

A live donor would always be the best donor," said Stella. I'm still hoping we can find one."

The Hamilton couple urges anyone who is healthy and interested to apply, even if their blood type does not match with Robert's, which is B+. If the person is not a match for Robert, they could still be a match for someone else. A chainlike swapping program allows for everyone to benefit.

The couple wants to make clear that of course they want a kidney for Robert, but they also want to raise awareness about kidney donation in general. They'd like people to register to be a donor in the event of death, and also to tell their families they'd like to be an organ donor when they die.

A silver lining amid the thus-far failed attempts to find a match, however, is that some who sought to be potential donors ended up finding out they themselves had underlying health conditions. The Slaters said one woman found out she wasn't eligible to be a donor because of a heart condition she didn't realize she had.

As for the upcoming holiday season, the couple has next to no plans. Robert will be recovering from surgery and the two are trying to limit their close contacts due to him being high-risk and immunocompromised.

It doesn't even feel like Christmas," said Stella.

The donation process takes time. There's next to no chance a donor could be confirmed before the holidays are over.

But maybe ... just maybe ... someone reading this article will be their belated Christmas miracle.

How to get tested to find out if you are a match:

St. Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton advises people to complete a medical screening questionnaire at stjoes.ca/livingdonorquestionnaire. Additional information can be found at stjoes.ca/hospital-services/kidney-urinary-services/living-kidney-donor-program, or call 905-522-1155 ext. 32156 or email livingdonors@stjoes.ca to connect with the kidney donation team. Slater's full name, which you can provide to the team, is Robert Edward Slater.

Katrina Clarke is a reporter at The Spectator. katrinaclarke@thespec.com