New Jersey dad Leon Szewcyk to receive fourth organ transplant — this time from daughter
A New Jersey man is reportedly set to receive his fourth organ donation, as he is scheduled to receive a kidney transplant from his daughter nearly forty years after undergoing his first such procedure.
Leon Szewcyk, 73, of North Caldwell, NJ, previously received two heart transplants and a kidney transplant with the first ticker-swap coming in the 1980s, ABC7 reported.
The father of two now needs a new kidney and was languishing on a 92,000-person long transplant waiting list for five years before his daughter learned she was a perfect donor match, the report stated.
“It’s unbelievable. She’s willing to do it,” the father told ABC7. “I’m just worried though, I want to make sure she’s ok after this, I get a second chance of life.”
“It wasn’t luck, it was God that did it,” the 73-year-old told NJ.com,
Daughter Jennifer Szewcyk, 46, knew she would be going through with the empathetic act as soon as she found out she was a match with her father.
“You know, I can live the rest of my life with one kidney. If I decided not to and dad passed away, I would never forgive myself,” she told ABC7.
Grateful for his latest new lease on life, Szewcyk hopes others will experience the life-saving generosity he derived from his several organ replacements.
“I got to see my grandkids born, and my kids married. Maybe I get to see grandkids married, you know,” Leon told ABC7.
The elder Szewcyk received his first heart transplant at the age of 31 — requiring another heart transplant and a kidney transplant due to negative side effects from prescribed medications, according to the outlet.
That same deteriorating side effect is the reason he requires one more kidney.
The new kidney replacement procedure will take place this spring, according to NJ.com.
